A planned managerial restructure will leave thousands of jobs at risk at Sainsbury's.
Just 24 hours after supermarket rival Tesco announced it was cutting 1,700 management jobs, Sainsbury's has followed suit and informed staff it plans to axe a number of store management positions.
The exact number of employees affected by the cost cutting drive has not been revealed but employees currently holding management roles will get the chance to apply for a smaller number of new management roles.
Those who are unsuccessful in their applications will either be demoted or made redundant.
Simon Roberts, retail and operations director of Sainsbury’s, which has three stores in Chester and one in Ellesmere Port, said: “We’re proposing a store management structure that will deliver best in class leadership and, in many cases, will offer an improved reward package for new management roles.
“The proposals will introduce a more efficient and effective structure, designed to meet the challenges of today’s retail environment.
"They will deliver cost savings to be invested in our customer offer and in our colleagues as they continue to provide the very best service for our customers."
He added: “Our intention is not to reduce overall headcount as a result of these proposals. I appreciate this will be a difficult time for those affected and we will fully support our people through these changes.”
News of the plans, which are part of a company objective to save £500m and simplify operation, comes just a day after Tesco announced they were shedding thousands of management roles in a similar shake-up.
The UK's biggest supermarket retailer plans to create 900 jobs and says it will try to move staff affected by the cuts into new roles.
