The UK’s biggest supermarket chain has announced a sweeping crackdown on supermarket sweep rules in an attempt to save on staff.
The changes, which come into force next month, come amid an industry push to slash costs.
The supermarket giant is hoping to slash wages and staff levels across the board by removing many of the sweep rules and introducing a ‘flexible work arrangement’ to encourage employees to work shorter hours, in an effort to save money and reduce wastage.
The changes come as a number of retailers have faced increasing pressure from customers to slash their workforce and cut prices.
In April, the UK’s Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) announced sweeping cuts to all aspects of its workforce, including the amount of hours people were allowed to work.
With a workforce of 5,000,000 workers, the DWP estimated that the savings from the move would cost the industry around £30 billion a year.
At the same time, the government has also revealed that it is considering a plan to cut public sector pay, as part of a drive to reduce the UKs £3 trillion national debt.
A series of sweeping wage and hour cuts have been proposed by the government, including an overhaul of the pay and hours of public sector workers.
Under the proposed changes, the minimum wage would be cut from £6.85 an hour to £5.25 an hour, while the minimum working week would be reduced from seven days to six.
These proposals have been met with anger from unions and the public, with some campaigners calling for the government to be stripped of its powers to change the UKís wage structure and cut benefits for the unemployed.
“This is an extremely damaging and reckless decision to cut the working week by over 50% while the government is reducing public sector employment by over 500,000,” said Nick Dearden, head of the union, Unite.
Unite is calling for a review of the rules, which the DLP said could lead to “job losses” for public sector employees.
Currently, if you want to work in a retail shop, you have to be a full-time employee.
The rule change will affect many thousands of people, including thousands of public servants.
This is a huge blow for people who are in the public sector and working full-timed hours,” said John Watson, director of campaigns at Foodpanda.
Foodpanda, which represents the public service workers who make up most of the food shop workforce, also warned that many people would lose their jobs if the proposed rules go ahead.
Many retail workers have also been working part-time to pay for their rent and food costs, and have been calling for their rights to be protected.
However, the supermarket chain is confident the changes will not be detrimental to their businesses.
It said it has received assurances from the government that it would not face any problems.
While the changes to wages and hours are significant, they are not likely to have a material impact on sales, which have been resilient.
“We expect the changes, if implemented, to reduce turnover in the sector and increase the profitability of our stores,” said a spokesperson for the company.
But campaigners have warned that the changes could have devastating effects on the jobs of the thousands of staff who work at supermarkets.
And many shoppers are already calling for supermarkets to go back to the drawing board.
One supermarket worker told the Daily Telegraph: “I’ve been here for 11 years and I’m going to be on my own.
I’m not going to have to take time off.
It’s not good for my family, it’s not fair for my employer.”
The supermarket chain will be able to cut workers’ hours and conditions, however, in a bid to save the company money, which is a key reason for its recent growth.
Meanwhile, a campaign group called Food Rights UK has also urged the government not to go ahead with the sweeping wage cuts.
Fiona McKeown, director for policy at Food Rights, said that the proposed wage cuts would also lead to fewer staff at supermarkets in the future. “
[This] will lead to an increase in food safety incidents, which could be devastating for the public health, and even result in deaths,” it said.
Fiona McKeown, director for policy at Food Rights, said that the proposed wage cuts would also lead to fewer staff at supermarkets in the future.
She added: “We need to have the proper policies in place to protect people who work in supermarkets and their safety.
This is an important part of the public debate about working hours and benefits.”
In a statement, a spokesman for Tesco said: “The safety of our food supply is our top priority and we continue to work closely with the Department of