Fairfax media has reported today that Coles plans to cut between 500 and 600 jobs from its head office in Melbourne tomorrow as part of a renewed efficiency drive.
ASU Branch Secretary, Ingrid Stitt, received no notification from the company, but says that if it is accurate, the union will seek information from Coles about what redeployment and training opportunities exist for impacted workers.
“We have not received confirmation from Coles as to whether these jobs are in fact going,” said Ms Stitt
“If this is true, it makes you wonder where all of these jobs are going, and how the company plans to assist in the transition plans for affected workers.
“Every time we hear words like ‘efficiency’, Australian workers lose jobs and somehow they reappear overseas.
“The exodus of jobs off-shore just keeps happening. Big companies cut jobs in the service sector, like accounting and IT, to cut costs to the bone and outsource them to big consulting firms, which just so happen to be in other countries.
The ASU has questioned whether there is a plan for attracting investment in Victoria for the service sector jobs of the future.
“Where is the plan? Victorian workers are not asking for much. They simply want money to be invested in jobs for their future and for their families. And we stand with them” Ms Stitt said.
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