Asda to cut 475 jobs and reduce hybrid working

Asda has confirmed 475 roles at their head offices in Leeds and Leicestershire will be cut and hybrid working reduced as part of a business restructure.

The retailer said the move, which would affect less than 10% of its head office staff, would enable it to “simplify structures” amid a challenging market.

In a note to employees on Tuesday, the company’s chairman Lord Rose said office attendance would also become compulsory for at least three days per week from January.

It comes after the company reported a 2.2% decline in total revenues excluding fuel, to £5.3bn from April to June 2024.

A spokesperson for the firm said: “The changes which are being communicated today will result in 475 colleagues being made redundant at our head offices in Leeds and Leicestershire.

“In addition, fixed-term contractors who are working on our IT transformation project will also leave over the course of the next few months as this project finishes.”

From January 2025, employees would also be required to be present in an Asda office location for a minimum of three days per week.

Lord Rose said the changes were needed to “ensure that the business was best placed to meet our long-term ambitions”.

“As part of this process, we are redefining roles and accountabilities to remove duplication and simplify structures,” he said.

Asda was bought in 2020 from Walmart by billionaire brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa in a £6.8bn deal with the backing of equity firm TDR Capital.

Last week, Asda announced TDR Capital had acquired the shares of Zuber Issa, who subsequently stepped down from his non-executive role on Asda’s board.

This brings the ownership of Asda by TDR Capital to 67.5%.

Mohsin Issa, who stepped back from his executive leadership role in September, owns 22.5 %, while 10% is still held by Walmart.

The GMB trade union said the planned job cuts were “further evidence this model of private equity ownership is bad for workers and bad for the UK economy”.

GMB national officer Nadine Houghton said it was now Asda workers who were “bearing the brunt” to offset what it said was the company’s declining market share.

“Handing hundreds of committed workers a brown envelope and showing them the door is a morally repugnant way to treat your workforce,” she added.

“GMB has concerns Asda has chosen not to follow the current established legal process for mass redundancies. We have sought clarification from them on this point.”

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