Tesco (LON:TSCO) has announced plans to close one of its call centres in Cardiff, putting 1,100 jobs at risk.
Workers at the Cardiff call centre will be offered employment in the Dundee call centre, which also handles phone calls, social media enquiries and emails. 250 jobs will be created in the Dundee centre, however, few are expected to move from Cardiff.
“This is clearly devastating news for our members and will have a wider impact on south Wales, as so many jobs are potentially lost to our local economy.” said Nick Ireland, the divisional officer of Usdaw, the shopworkers’ trade union.
“We will now enter into consultation talks with the company over the coming weeks to look at the business case for the proposed closure. Our priorities are to keep as many members as possible in employment, whether that is with Tesco or other local employers, and to get the best possible deal for our members.”
He said the employees in Cardiff were “understandably shocked”.
Matt Davies, the UK chief executive of Tesco, said: “The retail sector is facing unprecedented challenges and we must ensure we run our business in a sustainable and cost-effective way while meeting the changing needs of our customers.”
“To help us achieve this, we’ve taken the difficult decision to close our customer service operations in Cardiff”
“We realise this will have a significant effect on colleagues in the Cardiff area, and our priority now is to continue to do all we can to support them at this time.”
The supermarket giant has said it needs to ensure the business remains “sustainable and cost effective”.
Ken Skates, the Economy Secretary, has said those affected will receive a package of support.
Julie Morgan, Cardiff North Labour AM, said: “This affects a lot of people in Cardiff North and in surrounding constituencies,”
“It’s been there for many years – I’ve visited it on many occasions. What can the cabinet secretary do with this dismaying announcement?”
In response, Skates said: “We will work in close collaboration with Tesco and the major support agencies locally, including Careers Wales, Jobcentre Plus, colleges and the local authority to deliver the best possible support for the workers facing an uncertain future.”