Wal-Mart’s British supermarket chain Asda will eliminate 1,360 jobs in store management as it reorganizes operations to better align with the growing online grocery business.
The company stated that 4,100 staff would be affected by the restructure, which will also create 5,670 new roles, many of which are linked to e-commerce and grocery home-shopping. The new structure also will put more staff on the shop floor and removes back-office administration tasks.
"Every supermarket must adapt to the intense changes in UK retailing or they will get left behind, noted Asda CEO Andy Clarke.
The decision was first announced in May when Asda said as many as 2,600 staff could lose their jobs. It comes as Asda attempts to find $1 billion in cost-savings over the next five years.
European Supermarket Magazine reports that all the major grocers across in England are cutting costs as they are forced to lower prices to compete with the rise of discounters like Aldi and Lidl.