Sainsbury’s to cut 3,500 jobs and close Argos shops

Sainsbury’s has announced 3,500 job cuts, mainly from the Argos chain it bought in 2016.

The retailer said it planned to close about 420 standalone Argos stores by March 2024, although it would open 150 more outlets in Sainsbury’s stores.

Jobs will also go in the supermarkets with the closure of its delicatessens and fresh fish and meat counters.

The firm also posted half-year results, revealing a £137m loss which it blamed on closures and “market changes”.

It comes on the day England enters a second lockdown, which Sainsbury’s said would continue to accelerate “a number of shifts in our industry” as it expands its online and digital operations.

Sainsbury’s said in its statement that the 120 standalone Argos stores that had not reopened since they were closed in March would now shut permanently.

By the end of the restructuring programme, Sainsbury’s said it expected the total number of standalone Argo outlets to be about 100.

“We are talking to colleagues today about where the changes we are announcing in Argos standalone stores and food counters impact their roles,” said Simon Roberts, Sainsbury’s chief executive.

“We will work really hard to find alternative roles for as many of these colleagues as possible and expect to be able to offer alternative roles for the majority of impacted colleagues.”

The supermarket also said that by the end of this year, the group will have created 6,000 job overall.

However, the redundancies increase the mounting jobs toll announced by companies facing a coronavirus hit to trading.

On Wednesday, John Lewis and Lloyds Banking Group said they are cutting a combined 2,500 jobs.

More than 200,000 potential job losses have been announced across sectors including banking, hospitality, travel and retail since the start of Covid-19 pandemic in March. Thousands more remain on furlough.