John Lewis and Waitrose to hire over 10,000 people as Christmas looms
The John Lewis Partnership is recruiting over 10,000 people as the Christmas rush looms.
About 1,700 positions will be permanent – and 8,400 will be seasonal.
The partnership owns the John Lewis department store chain, as well as the high-end supermarket Waitrose.
In an announcement, it said 2,900 temporary roles in sales and merchandising are now available across its 34 John Lewis stores.
Meanwhile, Waitrose is seeking supermarket assistants, night shift workers and customer delivery drivers for its 329 shops.
A further 2,700 festive roles are being advertised in its supply chain – with warehouse workers and drivers required to help the firm fulfil deliveries and click-and-collect orders.
Lisa Berry, an executive director at the John Lewis Partnership, said: “We’re hugely proud of the way our two brands have become part of the excitement that surrounds Christmas and this is a great opportunity to be at the heart of that at such a special time.
“Our customers are at the forefront of everything we do; we want to deliver a great festive season for them with inspirational products and the very best customer service courtesy of our brilliant partners.”
All of this comes after a challenging few months for the group.
It reported an annual loss of £234m in March and warned an unspecified number of job cuts were on the cards.
For only the second time since 1953, its staff members – known as partners – did not receive an annual bonus due to the firm’s financial performance.
In May, John Lewis chair Dame Sharon White – a former top civil servant – was left bruised after a confidence vote was held by staff.
While reports earlier this year had suggested that the group planned to change its partnership model, Dame Sharon later confirmed: “The John Lewis Partnership will always be an employee-owned business. No ifs or buts.”