Major change coming to Tesco stores as company trials new opening hours after Rachel Reeves’ tax raid
TESCO is trialling new opening hours in a major change following soaring costs after Rachel Reeves’ tax raid.
The supermarket is testing out new hours in a bid to cut staffing costs.
Workers were told that a few of the Tesco Express stores which don’t rake in as much cash will be the testing grounds.
These Tesco stores will shut an hour earlier, at 10pm instead of 11pm.
They will also have fewer staff working during these hours, The Telegraph reported.
It is understood that the trial is only taking place in a “small number” of stores, but the exact number is unclear.
A spokesperson said the shake up is to ensure the shops are being run in the “most efficient way”.
The move comes after Tesco’s chief executive said that the supermarket is facing a wave of soaring costs following the Chancellor’s tax raid in April.
Tesco said it was facing a rise in staffing costs, in part due to a £235m increase in National Insurance contributions and the rise in minimum wage.
The chain previously warned it would be axing £500million of costs to tackle this.
Retailers are believed to be facing around £7billion in extra costs following the Budget.
A Tesco spokesperson 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.”
The basic wage for workers aged over 21 increased from £11.44 to £12.21 — instantly hiking staffing costs.
But most firms are more concerned about the dramatic changes to employers’ National Insurance Contributions, which will make hiring even tougher.
Companies have warned that the changes are to drastically impact part-time workers, soon to become 13 per cent more expensive overnight.
The contributions will go up from 13.8 per cent to 15 per cent from April 6, but the main impact comes from lowering the threshold it starts being paid at from £9,000 to £5,000, roping in many more part-time staff.
One FTSE chief executive told The Sun that it was “completely the wrong strategy for the Government to be pursuing if they want to encourage more people back into work with flexible jobs”.
Meanwhile, a slew of reports suggest companies are already cutting jobs, freezing hiring and preparing to hike prices, with inflation predicted to hit 3.5 per cent later this year.