Around 773 employees at the department store will be entering a consultation period, during which the business will assess whether to keep them on for the 386 jobs it is creating in other areas, City AM reports.
The staff affected will be those working in John Lewis’ home estimation and fitting services, the department responsible for measuring up in customers’ homes and installing curtains, blinds and flooring. At the moment, staff working in the administration of these services process the orders in various branches around the country, but these staff will be moved to one site.
John Lewis is also changing how it does catering. At the moment, employees prepare food in an in-store kitchen, but this will be changing to a model where food is prepared centrally, and assembled quickly at individual locations. The new model will be less labour-intensive.
Dino Rocos, operations director at John Lewis, said: “Our partners are passionate about offering the very best customer service and these proposals will allow us to modernise our business as it adapts to the changing needs of our customers and the role that shops play in their lives.”
The retailer said it is making the changes to ensure its operations are more efficient “against a backdrop of structural changes in the retail industry”. Last September, the John Lewis Partnership did warn that it would be losing staff “over time”. The business has also been reviewing its employee benefits, and has said it will be trimming the staff bonus this year.
