Morrisons poised to axe 2,600 store management roles

Morrisons told store staff and representatives its plans in a meeting this morning.

The grocer said the changes are part of its modernisation programme, which includes overhauling its old systems and infrastructure. It aims to reduce in-store management tiers, simplify responsibilities and improve its customer service. It said some Morrisons stores have seven tiers between the shop floor and the store manager.  

The retailer said it had already began to trial the new management structures, and found that it resulted in a stronger performance, while staff “appreciated the clearer lines of responsibility”.

Morrisons chief executive Dalton Philips said: “This is the right time to modernise the way our stores are managed. These changes will improve our focus on customers and lead to simpler, smarter ways of working.

“We know that moving to the new management structure will mean uncertainty for our colleagues and we will be supporting them through the process.”

The retailer said the new store structure would bring together department managers and supervisor positions into a single and smaller tier of team managers.

Morrisons said it plans to promote 1,000 of this group into new duty manager roles to bolster its senior management team in each store.

The retailer plans to create 1,000 jobs in Morrisons M local convenience stores and 3,000 in new supermarkets this year.

Morrisons said it will look to offer affected staff the opportunity to work in these parts of the business.

Joanne McGuinness, Usdaw’s national officer who is representing Morrison’s workers, said: “Today marks the start of a 45-day consultation period, where we will look in detail at the company’s business case. Our priority will be to safeguard as many jobs as possible, maximise employment within the business and get the best possible outcome for our members affected by this restructuring.”