British supermarket group Asda plans to remove up to 211 night shift manager roles as it seeks efficiency savings, it said on Thursday.
All of Britain's major supermarkets are seeking savings, reinvesting them to keep a lid on rising prices.
Asda, Britain's third largest grocer after market leader Tesco and Sainsbury's, said it planned to replace overnight restocking shifts in 184 smaller superstores, with the work instead done earlier in the day.
Impact
The working patterns of 4,137 workers would also be impacted.
They would retain their hours but not receive a night shift premium, it noted.
Asda, owned since 2021 by brothers Mohsin and Zuber Issa and private equity company TDR Capital, also plans a 22% reduction in worker hours across its 23 in-store Post Offices, with four Post Offices reducing opening hours about 9%, impacting 23 Post Office managers and 200 workers.
It also plans to close seven of its 254 in-store pharmacies, affecting 14 pharmacists and 48 workers.
Possible Merger
On the 23rd February, the London-based Times reported that the British supermarket chain could be merged with petrol forecourts business EG Group under plans being explored by the owners of both companies.
The combination would create a retail giant worth between £11 billion and £13 billion ($13.6 billion-$16.1 billion) which would have more than 581 supermarkets, 700 petrol forecourts and 100 convenience stores in Britain, the newspaper said.
Read More: Owners Of UK Supermarket Asda And EG Group Considering Merger: Reports
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