Britain's No. 4 grocer Wm Morrisons will announce a management restructuring in its stores within weeks that could mean losses of up to 2,000 jobs, the Guardian newspaper reported on Thursday, citing sources.
The Guardian said the move would likely affect managers overseeing product categories such as fresh food or non-food across the chain's 500 stores.
Morrisons has been coping with a UK grocery market growing at its slowest rate for 11 years as stagnant wages keep consumers shopping around to save money. Britons have been shying away from big weekly shopping trips and buying little and often in local convenience stores or online.
The company said last month that a decline in underlying sales accelerated in the first quarter, hurt by price cuts intended to combat a loss of trade to competitors as well as a weak overall food market.
The supermarket operator, which is holding its annual shareholder meeting in Bradford, England on Thursday, could not be reached for comment outside of regular business hours.
