The Co-op Group has announced it will cut 400 jobs at its Manchester head office and consult on approximately 50 more at its Nisa business, citing rising inflation and tough trading conditions. The mutual, which employs over 63,000 people, said the changes are aimed at lowering costs to protect shoppers from higher prices during the cost of living crisis.
The job losses come after the Co-op warned in April of ongoing supply chain disruption and higher staff wages, which contributed to a 57% drop in underlying profit to £100 million in 2021. Sales fell to £11.2 billion from £11.5 billion, with food sales declining 2% to £9.1 billion despite significant investment in new stores and price cuts.
Co-op boss Shirine Khoury-Haq has acknowledged that some food price increases are inevitable this year but pledged to minimise the impact on customers by holding prices on 1,000 key items and expanding the budget range. The group said it is bringing forward planned changes from 2023 to simplify its business and improve efficiency.
The Co-op stated there will be no changes to customer-facing roles in food stores or funeral homes, and it aims to reduce roles through natural turnover rather than compulsory redundancies where possible. A Nisa spokesperson confirmed a review to lower costs, which includes a consultation on potential redundancies.
