Woolworths in-store butcher shock closure, 250 shops shut and 489 jobs gone
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Shock as Woolworths says it will close 300 in-store butcher shops, causing 500 workers to lose their jobs
- Woolworths to close most of the 300 in-store butchers by the end of March
- The closures will cause the disappearance of 489 jobs and the closure of 250 in-store butcher shops.
- Instead, Woolies stores will only offer pre-packaged meat in the future
- It comes after the in-store butcher accounts for just 4 percent of meat sales.
Major supermarket chain Woolworths is closing most of its 300 in-store butcher shops, leaving nearly 489 workers out of work.
About 250 butcher shops will close by the end of March with 420 trade-skilled butchers and 69 non-trade-skilled workers out of work.
Woolworths offers to redeploy staff to different roles or free post-employment support if workers are not interested in returning.
“We have over 1,000 supermarkets and only 300 of them have in-store butchers,” a Woolworths spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia.
Woolworths will close 250 of its in-store butcher shops (pictured) by the end of March
The supermarket claims customers are turning to pre-packaged meats, with in-store butchers’ sales accounting for just 4 percent of meat sales.
Woolworths will keep 50 of its in-store butcher shops open due to customer demand for service in certain areas.
“We found that they are simply not supported by customer demand, with only 10 percent of customers choosing to use serviced counters,” the representative said.
“There’s a shift in demand towards pre-packaged options, whether it’s for convenience, they can be stored longer, it’s a constant trend.”
Rival supermarket chain Coles closed all of its in-store butcher counters at the end of 2021.
That decision affected up to 1,400 jobs, and two-thirds of butchers were laid off.
“This decision was really made by looking at where customers shop and what they want,” the Woolworths spokeswoman said.
‘Unfortunately, this means that 500 roles will be made redundant. All workers will be offered relocation opportunities and if they do not wish to relocate, we are offering complete relocation packages.
‘This includes 1-on-1 career support, such as finding local jobs, improving your resumes and accessing free confidential advice.’
The supermarket giant ‘deeply regrets’ the impact the decision will have, as it acknowledges that many of the workers are well known to its regular customers.
“This has been an unfortunate decision that we have had to make, but we continue to evolve based on what we see in customer demand,” the spokeswoman said.