??Photo taken on June 3, 2020 shows a sign advertising a sale at the Marks and Spencer store on Oxford Street in London, Britain. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)
LONDON, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) — British retailer Marks & Spencer announced on Tuesday its plan to slash 7,000 jobs over the next three months amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The job cuts will include departures in management and in stores, with a significant proportion coming through voluntary departures and early retirement, the company said in a statement, adding that it wants to learn from the crisis and accelerate transformation.
Noting that online clothing and home sales have performed strongly since the start of the year, the company said that online sales have represented 41 percent of total clothing and home sales in the last eight weeks despite significant decrease in store sales.
“It is clear that there has been a material shift in trade and whilst it is too early to predict with precision where a new post COVID sales mix will settle, we must act now to reflect this change,” the company said.
It expects to create a number of new jobs in online fulfilment and the new ambient food warehouse and reshape store portfolio over the course of the year. Enditem