Thousands of temporary staff have been kept on by supermarkets as absence rates soar because of the continuing impact of the Omicron surge.
Sainsbury’s said around 15,000 of the 22,000 temps it recruited over the festive season had been kept on, with twice as many recruited compared with last year.
Meanwhile, Tesco CEO Ken Murphy said about 13,000 of the 30,000 temporary staff brought in by the supermarket over the Christmas period would stay on at least until the end of January.
Murphy said levels of absence were still “well below” levels seen in earlier stages of the pandemic.
The extension to temporary contracts is the latest move by the industry to head off a workforce crisis caused by Covid cases and self isolation.
In talks with Defra officials this week, companies and industry bodies are understood to have reported average absence rates of around 10%. However, some reported a figure as a high as 20%, with the situation now worse in the north of England after the original spike in and around London.
Sources also expressed frustration at delays to the arrival of testing kits promised by prime minister Boris Johnson almost two weeks ago, with the bulk of the companies to receive them not expected to get them until next week at least.
Food companies also complained about being in the dark over exactly who would receive support as part of the government’s pledge to provide food factories and distribution centres with thousands of daily Covid tests. This rollout is understood to have been delayed until next week.
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