Co-op is cutting 400 jobs in Manchester

The Co-op Group has announced to cut down 400 jobs at their head office on Angel Square in Manchester. In addition, they are also planning to axe 50 more jobs at their Nisa business.

Inflation and supply chain challenges

The supermarket chain has blamed tough trading conditions and rising inflation for lack of profits. These challenges are  reflecting on their overall poor financial performance. Co-op warned in April that issues with food supplies and soaring inflation is affecting its annual profits. Moreover, high wages of staff also had an impact on Co-op’s revenues. The retailer’s profit fell to £100m with a reduction of 57% in 2021. “The tough trading environment, including rising inflation, means we have taken the difficult decision to bring forward some of the changes we had planned for 2023.” Co-op said in their official statement.

Company is cutting jobs

Co-op is employing more than 63,000 workers across United Kingdom. Moreover, 4,000 of these employees are working at their headquarter in Manchester. The company has decided to lay off about 400 workers employed in Manchester. In addition, Co-op will also close open positions and relocate workers. This is a part of a major restructuring at Co-op Group. “At our last set of annual results, we shared that as part of our strategy, making our Co-op more efficient and cost-effective was a priority. “These changes, designed to simplify our approach to business, will sadly mean a number of colleagues in central functions will leave the business.” A Co-op spokeswoman said in her statement and claimed that the company took this decision with a heavy heart.

Job cuts at Nisa

Nisa, a buying group which supports a network of hundreds of independently owned and run stores will also witness job losses. Moreover, the group aims to lower costs in order to “support our partners and customers” during the cost of living crisis. Most supermarket chain across the UK struggling to retain their profitability this year.

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