Clothing retailer New Look has put over 500 jobs at risk in North Staffordshire, attributing it to the way the business has changed in recent years.
News of the nightshift being scrapped at the fashion chain’s lead distribution centre in Chesterton was reported by The Mirror yesterday, meaning it will only operate a day shift from later this year.
The company has said it will create around 300 new positions at the site and affected employees will be given the chance to apply for the new roles, but there will still be some redundancies.
Consultations with staff will start “imminently” and any redundancies will not take effect until mid-May.
A New Look spokesperson said: “New Look has changed significantly over the past few years. We have accelerated our ecommerce business and right-sized our store estate.
“With this shift, it has become increasingly clear that the processes at the distribution centre no longer suit our operational needs.
“Therefore, we are proposing a necessary change to working hours in the distribution centre, including the removal of the night shift. Regrettably, we expect this will result in a number of redundancies at the site.
“We are focusing on supporting our affected colleagues at this time and we expect to be able to offer a considerable number of these individuals new roles on the day shift.”
New Look employs around 1,200 people at the distribution centre. It has eight stores in Staffordshire and 440 across the UK.
Earlier this month it announced seven shop closures, but has plans to open four more this year.
