Latest news with #staffcosts
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Tesco to close its Express stores an hour earlier after being hit by £235million in Rachel Reeves' tax raid
Tesco is set to close its Express stores an hour earlier after the supermarket giant was hit by a £235million rise in staff costs by Rachel Reeves ' tax raid. The chain is trialling shorter opening hours at the Express stores, it is understood, closing some at 10pm rather than the usual 11pm. Meanwhile, Tesco is also anticipated to have less staff running those stores during their opening hours, The Telegraph first reported. The changes were created to 'make things simpler for our colleagues and to ensure that we are running these shops in the most efficient way', a spokesman said - adding that the trial will take place in a number of stores. It comes after Tesco's chief executive Ken Murphy revealed the supermarket giant was doing its best to offset a burst of extra costs following Reeves' tax raid, which took effect from April this year. After the raid was announced, Tesco said it was facing a serious rise in its staffing bill, including a £235million increase in National Insurance contributions. Under the changes, employers fork out a tax equivalent to 15 per cent of their workers' pay packets, an increase from 13.8 per cent previously. Tesco is dealing with affected staff and considering individual circumstances and whether they need to transfer to another store, it is understood. A spokesman for the chain said: 'These changes aren't visible to our customers, who will continue to receive the same great service they expect, and there are no changes to the range of products we sell.' In April, Tesco warned its profits would drop by as much as 14per cent this year as it gets ready to invest £400million in price cuts.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Tesco to close stores early after Reeves tax raid
Tesco is to close some stores an hour earlier after being struck by a £235m rise in staff costs from Rachel Reeves's tax raid. Britain's biggest supermarket is understood to be trialling shorter opening hours at Express stores, shutting some at 10pm rather than 11pm. Tesco is also expected to have fewer staff running those stores when they are open. Workers have been told the trial is taking place in some of Tesco's less profitable stores, which have been dubbed 'Express Lite' shops internally. A spokesman said the changes were designed to 'make things simpler for our colleagues and to ensure that we are running these shops in the most efficient way'. They said the trial was taking place in a small number of stores. The change comes after Ken Murphy, Tesco's chief executive, said that the supermarket was racing to offset a wave of extra costs following the Chancellor's tax raid, which took effect from April. That month, the grocer said it was facing a steep rise in its staffing bill, including a £235m increase in National Insurance contributions in the latest financial year. Under the changes, which came into force in the spring, employers pay a tax equivalent to 15pc of their workers' pay packets, up from 13.8pc previously. The threshold at which the tax kicks in has also fallen from earnings of £9,100 a year to £5,000. As well as the National Insurance changes, the minimum wage also rose by 6.7pc in April. Altogether, retailers are facing £7bn of extra costs following Ms Reeves's Budget, according to the British Retail Consortium. Mr Murphy in April said that Tesco would strip out about £500m of costs in the coming financial year to offset the Budget hit. He urged Ms Reeves to avoid increasing retailers' costs further, saying: 'All we're saying as an industry is, don't make it too hard for us to keep delivering great value.' This weekend, union leaders voiced concerns over the changes to 'Express Lite' stores, saying they risked creating problems for staff. Daniel Adams, Usdaw national officer, said the union 'has not agreed this change and we will be monitoring the trials closely to assess the impact on our members'. He added: 'The union has repeatedly raised issues with the business around the risks of low staffing and retain significant concerns around how this trial will work. 'While we have been assured by the company that they do not anticipate any redundancies from this process, we are aware it may involve staff transferring to other stores. That in itself can cause problems with travel, caring commitments and shift patterns.' Tesco is understood to be speaking to affected staff and is taking into account individual circumstances if they need to transfer to another store. A spokesman said: 'These changes aren't visible to our customers, who will continue to receive the same great service they expect, and there are no changes to the range of products we sell.' Other businesses are also shutting earlier in a bid to counter the increase in staff costs. In April, The Telegraph revealed that pubs were calling last orders earlier, closing up at 9pm rather than 11pm. The attempts to make stores run more efficiently also come amid mounting pressure from rival Asda, which this year kicked off a price war to try to win back shoppers. Last week, Allan Leighton, the Asda chairman, said the supermarket had opened up a gap with Tesco on prices. He said the store would continue to cut prices on some items, while raising prices of other goods more slowly. Tesco warned in April that its profits would fall as much as 14pc this year as it prepares to invest £400m in price cuts. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Telegraph
5 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Tesco to close stores early after Reeves tax raid
Tesco is to close some stores an hour earlier after being struck by a £235m rise in staff costs from Rachel Reeves's tax raid. Britain's biggest supermarket is understood to be trialling shorter opening hours at Express stores, shutting some at 10pm rather than 11pm. Tesco is also expected to have fewer staff running those stores when they are open. Workers have been told the trial is taking place in some of Tesco's less profitable stores, which have been dubbed 'Express Lite' shops internally. A spokesman said the changes were designed to 'make things simpler for our colleagues and to ensure that we are running these shops in the most efficient way'. They said the trial was taking place in a small number of stores. The change comes after Ken Murphy, Tesco's chief executive, said that the supermarket was racing to offset a wave of extra costs following the Chancellor's tax raid, which took effect from April. That month, the grocer said it was facing a steep rise in its staffing bill, including a £235m increase in National Insurance contributions in the latest financial year. Under the changes, which came into force in the spring, employers pay a tax equivalent to 15pc of their workers' pay packets, up from 13.8pc previously. The threshold at which the tax kicks in has also fallen from earnings of £9,100 a year to £5,000. As well as the National Insurance changes, the minimum wage also rose by 6.7pc in April. Altogether, retailers are facing £7bn of extra costs following Ms Reeves's Budget, according to the British Retail Consortium. Mr Murphy in April said that Tesco would strip out about £500m of costs in the coming financial year to offset the Budget hit. He urged Ms Reeves to avoid increasing retailers' costs further, saying: 'All we're saying as an industry is, don't make it too hard for us to keep delivering great value.' This weekend, union leaders voiced concerns over the changes to 'Express Lite' stores, saying they risked creating problems for staff. 'Risks of low staffing' Daniel Adams, Usdaw national officer, said the union 'has not agreed this change and we will be monitoring the trials closely to assess the impact on our members'. He added: 'The union has repeatedly raised issues with the business around the risks of low staffing and retain significant concerns around how this trial will work. 'While we have been assured by the company that they do not anticipate any redundancies from this process, we are aware it may involve staff transferring to other stores. That in itself can cause problems with travel, caring commitments and shift patterns.' Tesco is understood to be speaking to affected staff and is taking into account individual circumstances if they need to transfer to another store. A spokesman said: 'These changes aren't visible to our customers, who will continue to receive the same great service they expect, and there are no changes to the range of products we sell.' Other businesses are also shutting earlier in a bid to counter the increase in staff costs. In April, The Telegraph revealed that pubs were calling last orders earlier, closing up at 9pm rather than 11pm. The attempts to make stores run more efficiently also come amid mounting pressure from rival Asda, which this year kicked off a price war to try to win back shoppers. Last week, Allan Leighton, the Asda chairman, said the supermarket had opened up a gap with Tesco on prices. He said the store would continue to cut prices on some items, while raising prices of other goods more slowly. Tesco warned in April that its profits would fall as much as 14pc this year as it prepares to invest £400m in price cuts.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Tesco to close stores early after Reeves tax raid
Tesco is to close some stores an hour earlier after being struck by a £235m rise in staff costs from Rachel Reeves's tax raid. Britain's biggest supermarket is understood to be trialling shorter opening hours at Express stores, shutting some at 10pm rather than 11pm. Tesco is also expected to have fewer staff running those stores when they are open. Workers have been told the trial is taking place in some of Tesco's less profitable stores, which have been dubbed 'Express Lite' shops internally. A spokesman said the changes were designed to 'make things simpler for our colleagues and to ensure that we are running these shops in the most efficient way'. They said the trial was taking place in a small number of stores. The change comes after Ken Murphy, Tesco's chief executive, said that the supermarket was racing to offset a wave of extra costs following the Chancellor's tax raid, which took effect from April. That month, the grocer said it was facing a steep rise in its staffing bill, including a £235m increase in National Insurance contributions in the latest financial year. Under the changes, which came into force in the spring, employers pay a tax equivalent to 15pc of their workers' pay packets, up from 13.8pc previously. The threshold at which the tax kicks in has also fallen from earnings of £9,100 a year to £5,000. As well as the National Insurance changes, the minimum wage also rose by 6.7pc in April. Altogether, retailers are facing £7bn of extra costs following Ms Reeves's Budget, according to the British Retail Consortium. Mr Murphy in April said that Tesco would strip out about £500m of costs in the coming financial year to offset the Budget hit. He urged Ms Reeves to avoid increasing retailers' costs further, saying: 'All we're saying as an industry is, don't make it too hard for us to keep delivering great value.' This weekend, union leaders voiced concerns over the changes to 'Express Lite' stores, saying they risked creating problems for staff. Daniel Adams, Usdaw national officer, said the union 'has not agreed this change and we will be monitoring the trials closely to assess the impact on our members'. He added: 'The union has repeatedly raised issues with the business around the risks of low staffing and retain significant concerns around how this trial will work. 'While we have been assured by the company that they do not anticipate any redundancies from this process, we are aware it may involve staff transferring to other stores. That in itself can cause problems with travel, caring commitments and shift patterns.' Tesco is understood to be speaking to affected staff and is taking into account individual circumstances if they need to transfer to another store. A spokesman said: 'These changes aren't visible to our customers, who will continue to receive the same great service they expect, and there are no changes to the range of products we sell.' Other businesses are also shutting earlier in a bid to counter the increase in staff costs. In April, The Telegraph revealed that pubs were calling last orders earlier, closing up at 9pm rather than 11pm. The attempts to make stores run more efficiently also come amid mounting pressure from rival Asda, which this year kicked off a price war to try to win back shoppers. Last week, Allan Leighton, the Asda chairman, said the supermarket had opened up a gap with Tesco on prices. He said the store would continue to cut prices on some items, while raising prices of other goods more slowly. Tesco warned in April that its profits would fall as much as 14pc this year as it prepares to invest £400m in price cuts. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
The Independent
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Wetherspoons plans to open even more pubs after toasting sunny weather
JD Wetherspoon forecasts a "reasonable" full-year outcome despite rising staff costs, boosted by recent sales figures attributed to favourable weather conditions. The pub chain, operating 795 locations across the UK, reported a 5.6 per cent increase in like-for-like sales during the 13 weeks leading up to April 27th. Year-to-date, comparable sales have risen by 5.1 per cent. It now plans to open up in new sites. Chairman Tim Martin acknowledged the impact of good weather on recent trading, but expressed optimism for the financial year's results. He said: 'Bearing in mind that recent trading has been helped by favourable weather, the company anticipates a reasonable outcome for the financial year, notwithstanding previously reported wage and tax increases of approximately £1.2 million per week.' According to The Sun the company is planning pubs in six new locations. These are: Douglas, Isle of Man - May 14 Fulham, SW London - June 17 Kenilworth, Warwickshire - July 30 Tooley Street, London Bridge - August 28 Basildon, Essex - September 23 Merchant Square, Paddington - late summer This follows earlier warnings from the group regarding a £60 million surge in labour costs from April onwards, due to increases in both employers' national insurance contributions and the minimum wage. Mr Martin has cautioned over the impact of the surging wage bill and in January called on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to cut pub food taxes before the jump in costs linked to last October's Budget. Wetherspoon said total sales in its most recent quarter were up by a more muted 5 per cent and by 4 per cent year to date as it sold off seven venues. Mr Martin said the group was also investing in new staff facilities across 520 pubs, with 49 in the current financial year, including new staff rooms and changing rooms at a cost of around £100,000 per site. He added the chain was trialling a new gourmet burger deal, which he said has 'proved extremely popular'.
