Type
Internal restructuring
Country
Italy
Region
Sud; Puglia;
Location of affected unit(s)
Puglia
Sector
Retail
Retail Trade, Except Of Motor Vehicles And Motorcycles
Retail Trade, Except Of Motor Vehicles And Motorcycles
47 - Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles

230 jobs
Number of planned job losses
Job loss
Announcement Date
19 February 2015
Employment effect (start)
1 April 2015
Foreseen end date

Description

Coop Estense, a subsidiary of Italian cooperative supermarket chain Coop Italia, has announced 230 job cuts. The intention is to dismiss 150 grocery stockers and 80 workers employed in the fishmonger division. These services will be then outsourced.

The decision was announced during a press conference and blamed on the 50 EUR million balance losses incurred by the company in the Apulia region over the last five years. The decision to reduce the headcount is also attributed to the collapse in demand, the extent of undeclared work and tax evasion in the local retail sector.

The cooperative plans to reduce operational costs and adopt strategies aimed at reaching new customers and at strengthening business relationships with local producers.

The company announced its intention to negotiate with trade unions alternatives to reduce the impact of the measure and the number of redundancies. From their side, trade unions criticised the choice of the company to disclose a dismissal plan to the press without prior information or discussion with worker representatives. Unions called for workers to refuse overtime work and other flexible work arrangements.


Sources

  • 19 February 2015: La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno
  • 19 February 2015: Il Corriere del Mezzogiorno
  • 20 February 2015: Bari Today
  • 23 February 2015: Trade unions - Press release

Citation

Eurofound (2015), Coop Estense, Internal restructuring in Italy, factsheet number 78695, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/78695.