Morrisons announces new rule at UK supermarkets | UK | News
Supermarket giant Morrisons has announced a new rule that could mean big changes for workers. The store says its employees need to be more “flexible” and “versatile.” The supermarket’s change follows changes to opening hours at Morrisons Daily stores. Store managers were told to ask employees about their flexibility.
CEO Rami Baitiéh considers cutting costs to support turnaround plan General store. Employees may be asked to change their normal shift patterns or move to another store. Employees will be expected to be “highly skilled in all aspects of store operations,” including “mostly” working the cash registers, working in the grocery store and manning in-store Post Offices.
The changes will ensure Morrisons Daily stores have better opening hours and shift patterns in line with customer demand.
Views on the plans were shared in a memo shared internally with Morrisons staff last week, The Times reported.
“Our business and customer habits are constantly changing, and to remain competitive and sustainable we must continually seek ways to improve our operational efficiency,” the statement said.
“Aligning store staff working hours to workforce patterns isn’t about cutting back; it’s about matching staffing levels to actual demand and ensuring the right people are in the workplace at the right time.”
According to reports, Morrisons is in the early stages of the consultation and its results will be used to determine new opening hours for stores.
A spokesperson for Morrisons said: “We regularly review our shift patterns to ensure they are in line with customer demand and have recently begun exploring more flexible working options with Morrisons Daily colleagues to further enhance the in-store experience for customers.
“The circumstances of individual colleagues are fully taken into account when considering any changes.
“The exercise is about having the right hours at the right time of day and being flexible with tasks in store to better serve customers. It is purely exploratory at this time; no action has been taken.”
