Pick n Pay slashes 3500 jobs

Published: 31 July 2017

Pick n Pay has cut 3500 jobs as part of a voluntary severance programme the retailer started in April to save costs amid a recession.

The job cuts - equal to 10% of the retailer's total workforce of 35 000 - were due to changes in Pick n Pay's business related to the centralisation of its distribution network as well as technology related changes, Pick n Pay's head of strategy and corporate affairs David North told City Press on Monday.

The jobs lost were roles and functions across its Pick n Pay head office, regional structure, store operations and supply chain, the retailer said in a statement. "These roles and functions were no longer required due to improvements in organisation, planning and technology," the company added.

"The positions are being cut on a voluntary basis both from the side of the company and the side of the employee," North said.

No Pick n Pay employee was forced to lose their job, he added.

Those that had accepted voluntary severance packages had received 1.5 weeks pay for every year worked as well as four-weeks of notice pay.

North wasn't able to say how many applications Pick n Pay had received but it was obviously more than the 3500 positions that the company is cutting.

He declined to say how much it had cost Pick n Pay to cut the 3500 jobs but he said the amount would be disclosed when Pick n Pay released its next set of financial results in October.

In a statement, Pick n Pay said it would see the benefits of the savings from the job cuts in the group's 2019 financial year and the savings would have a "significant positive impact on operating costs".
- fin24

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