Asda has announced a major store management restructure, which will see the merger of key leadership roles, in a move it said was aimed at “taking out complexity” from the business.
The shake-up, which comes as Asda executive chairman Allan Leighton leads a fight to turn around the struggling supermarket giant, will see Asda’s section manager and trading manager roles being combined into a new simplified manager role.
The new roles will report to Asda operations managers and the move will include appointing new operations managers in some of its larger stores.
Asda confirmed an as yet undisclosed number of jobs would be lost as a result of the changes.
Asda job losses
It said staff whose jobs were being lost as a result were being informed of the moves today, but added that conversations were not happening in every store and that Asda Express convenience stores were not part of this change.
The supermarket said it hoped the moves would result in around 20% of its store management staff being promoted as part of the changes, leading to an increase in their pay and benefits.
The move will see section leaders becoming team leaders, who Asda said would take on a broader range of responsibilities across the store.
The plan has echoes of moves by other supermarkets in recent years to strip out complexity, which have also resulted in job losses.
In 2023 Tesco announced a sweeping management shake-up across all its larger superstores and Extras, including a new management structure across all its bigger stores, which saw the removal of 1,750 lead and team manager roles.
Management changes
Asda has already made a series of management changes, including a major round of redundancies announced in March. The supermarket folded the management of its IPL sourcing and logistics division into its central management function. It involved hundreds of staff who took part in its landmark £800m IT upgrade – named Project Future – leaving the business.
Leighton has set out his stall to carve out a price gap between Asda and its full range of supermarket rivals.
Also in March, he announced a major range cull to take place over the following 12 months, after issuing a warning profits would be “significantly reduced” due to the investment needed in prices and stores.
The latest shake-up comes amid rising tensions between Asda and the GMB union. The union has clashed with the supermarket over its claims that Asda store workers are among the lowest-paid supermarket workers in the UK, even after their latest pay rise.
Asda has hit back at the claims, stressing it had invested more than £500m in retail pay since 2021, including £80m in the current year.
An Asda spokesman said: “We’re focused on making Asda the UK’s best value full-service supermarket by providing customers with an outstanding experience every time they shop, and having the right store leadership structure in place is key to delivering this.
“The investment in this new structure brings decision-making closer to the shop floor, and our customers, by clarifying roles and providing clearer accountabilities. It also creates more opportunities for colleagues to develop their careers and progress into store management roles, with a significant number of immediate promotions confirmed today. We will be offering our full support to other colleagues impacted by the changes.”
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