John Lewis Partnership cut 3,800 roles over the last year as part of its cost-cutting drive in stores, The Telegraph has reported.
New filings by the department store retailer showed the number of staff working for the partnership had reduced to 70,500 by the end of January 2024, compared with 74,300 at the same time last year.
The retailer saved £26m in employment costs over the period along with savings from its decision not to pay staff a bonus in 2023.
This is part of the retailer’s drive to cut £600m in extra costs across the company, in addition to £300m already cut in recent years.
Filings showed the majority of job cuts over the year came from Waitrose stores as the number of staff reduced to 49,600 in January from an average of 52,700 a year earlier.
This follows news of the supermarket chain coming under fire after offering impacted staff a lower redundancy package, despite having proposed “a more generous payout” in January.
A John Lewis Partnership spokesperson said: “The reduction in roles has been largely through natural turnover. We’ve made significant progress in the last year to transform the business and return it to profitability; we’re investing record amounts in our retail brands and we expect profits to grow further next year.
“Our improved performance has been supported by our customers’ love for John Lewis and Waitrose, with an increasing number embracing our partner-led service.”
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