more store closures and job cuts ahead in uk?

I think the jobless figures for the U.K. dropped a small amount according to the latest report. Why is not the Government curbing immigration unless the person has a job to go to, why is not the Government giving unemployed youngsters apprenticeships in Industry and paying the Companies for this ? It would ensure enough Labour is available when the economy improves and keep the youngsters out of mishchief if they are being trained .

Ford is closing down it's Transit Van plant in Southampton with a loss of 15,000 jobs,Dow chemicals is also

reducing staff in various Countries , including the U.K., no details at present.

Argos is to close some of it's stores to enlarge it's online shopping because of decreasing sales., up to 100 stores to close.

What have we done to our economy by adopting online shopping ??????? Out of town shopping malls meaning more Petrol being used and the result is the High street is becoming a ghost town.

Panda wrote:I think the jobless figures for the U.K. dropped a small amount according to the latest report. Why is not the Government curbing immigration unless the person has a job to go to, why is not the Government giving unemployed youngsters apprenticeships in Industry and paying the Companies for this ? It would ensure enough Labour is available when the economy improves and keep the youngsters out of mishchief if they are being trained .

As ever Panda, this present Tory government, as were their New Labour predecessors, are siding with big business interests by allowing an endless stream of cheap, (and frankly a shoddy) labour force across our borders to keep costs down.
A friend of mine recently had the kitchen of his council house renovated. Only one of the workmen spoke understandable English, the plumber connected his washing machine to the water supply, but somehow forgot to connect the outflow to the pipework.... a 'slight mistake' which ruined some of his newly fitted kitchen units. The chippie then had to be sent back by the council to fit the hall/kitchen door which he had forgotten to refit before leaving.

It is still a regular sight in London for builders vans to pull up on street corners to pick up itinerant labour.All foreign and probably illegal,happens every single day.
It is not hard for the government to find these pick up points and arrest those involved.Its been going on for years.I have worked with all sorts in London and they are all rubbish,at work that is,mostly well mannered though.Mostly Russians,Poles.Rumanians.Never drink their coffee,it will kill you.

Lioned wrote:It is still a regular sight in London for builders vans to pull up on street corners to pick up itinerant labour.All foreign and probably illegal,happens every single day.
It is not hard for the government to find these pick up points and arrest those involved.Its been going on for years.I have worked with all sorts in London and they are all rubbish,at work that is,mostly well mannered though.Mostly Russians,Poles.Rumanians.Never drink their coffee,it will kill you.

Very true Lioned, I tried a cup of Polish coffee last week..... Call it no way... it's really a brown coloured emetic .

It looks as if Comet is about to burn itself out - very sad.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/comet-brink-administration-081721540.html

Not Born Yesterday wrote:It looks as if Comet is about to burn itself out - very sad.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/comet-brink-administration-081721540.html

I READ THAT ONLY A FEW MINUTES AGO ON MSN NEWS,RATHER SAD,WERE THEY IN TROUBLE BEFORE OR AM I THINKING OF CURRYS

Yes Badboy, Comet was sold for £2 because it was in such a financial state. There are 6ooo job losses and it is not known yet what the new owner will do . Apparently Comet did not keep up with the times .

IT IS BEING SAID THAT MANY FIRMS IN THE SAME LINE OF BUSINESS AS COMET ARE STRUGGLING,AT LEAST THAT WHAT I THINK I HEARD.

NOT SURE IF RELATED TO DOWNTURN,BUT A LOCAL MFI STORE WAS DEMOLISHED.

Badboy wrote:IT IS BEING SAID THAT MANY FIRMS IN THE SAME LINE OF BUSINESS AS COMET ARE STRUGGLING,AT LEAST THAT WHAT I THINK I HEARD.

NOT SURE IF RELATED TO DOWNTURN,BUT A LOCAL MFI STORE WAS DEMOLISHED.

Badboy, we are going to see a lot more Store closures, the Internet has much to do with it but also there is talk that Britain could have it's credit rating cut and the economies around the world are in recession now.

The Hurricane in the U.S. is estimated to cost USD over 40 Billion and it will take months for the Country to get back to normal.

SOMEONE SAID THAT AT JOHN LEWIS THEY HIRE TECH FANATICS WHO KNOW PRODUCTS INSIDE OUT,WHERAS OTHER FIRMS DON'T.

SONY ,PANASONIC AND ANOTHER TV MAKERS ARE CUTTING JOBS,BUT I THINK THAT IS MOSTLY JAPAN.

Dixons chief wants to help save Comet jobs


Dixons Retail's chief executive has pledged to try to save some of the staff facing job cuts at collapsed electricals chain, Comet.








Almost 7,000 jobs are at risk following the collapse of Comet. Photo: EPA





By Telegraph Staff

10:52AM GMT 07 Nov 2012

9 Comments




Almost 7,000 jobs are at risk following the collapse of the chain, which was placed into administration after the American investors behind OpCapita decided to cut financial support.


Sebastian James, chief executive of rival chain, Dixons, told The Sun that he wants to hire as many workers as possible for his PC World and Currys stores.


Dixons is recruiting 3,000 Christmas staff, including 2,000 at its stores. Dixons has delayed its recruitment process by a week to allow Comet staff to apply for positions.


Mr James said there could be no guarantees over how many Comet staff he would take on. But he added: “It’s incredibly important to us that we do what we can to help out. We are hoping we can get as many of the staff at Comet on board for Christmas — and hopefully beyond.”


Mark Webb, head of media relations at Dixons Retail, added: “We’re delighted with the response we’ve had from Comet staff. We’ve had more than 500 enquiries, including 300 walk-in enquiries at retail parks and 100 for head office roles.



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"We’ve also had Comet staff in their uniforms walk into our stores asking about jobs. Most branches of Comet are on the same retail parks as our stores.”

“Clearly this is going to be a difficult Christmas for Comet employees and their families – we’d like to offer them some hope," he said. "For now, the jobs are temporary, but we are hoping that a good number will become permanent. All will undergo rigorous training in our service and support methods.”

There was positive news for customers on Tuesday when administrators Deloitte said they would accept gift vouchers.

Deloitte halted vouchers on Friday after Comet called in administrators, sparking uproar. But, the administrators said they have now been able to assess the financial position of the company and collate information about the "quantity, value and nature" of gift cards in circulation.

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Revealed: Hedge funds betting millions against Britain's high street





Debt crisis: live

Morrisons sales slip in 'fragile' environment


Sales at Wm Morrison slipped during the last three months as heavy discounts in the supermarket industry and fragile consumer confidence hurt the grocery chain.








Morrisons said on Thursday that in the quarter to October 28, like-for-like sales dropped 2.1pc. Photo: ALAMY






By Rachel Cooper, and agencies

8:17AM GMT 08 Nov 2012


12 Comments




Morrisons said on Thursday that in the quarter to October 28, like-for-like sales dropped 2.1pc. That compares to analyst forecasts of a decline of 2pc, according to a company poll, and is a deterioration on a fall of 0.9pc in the first half.


Britain's fourth-biggest grocer flagged a challenging trading environment, with "consumer confidence still fragile and high levels of promotional activity a persistent feature of the market".


Bradford-based Morrisons also said that its commercial director, Richard Hodgson, was leaving the day-to-day business.


Martyn Jones, corporate services director, has been appointed interim commercial director pending the recruitment of a successor for Hodgson.


Latest industry data from Kantar Worldpanel has shown Morrisons lagging the sales growth of its three big rivals as well as smaller players such as discounters Aldi and Lidl.



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However, this is partly explained by Morrisons' lower level of store openings as well as its lack of an online offer and a significant convenience business.

On Wednesday, Kantar data showed that Morrisons' sales had slipped 0.4pc in the last three months, while rival Sainsbury's lifted its market share with sales rising 6.4pc in the same period.

Morrisons said it recognised the need to improve its performance, particularly improving the effectiveness of its promotions.

The supermarket added it was making good progress on steps such as promoting fresh food and launching Morrisons Cellar, its online wine operation.

Last month, Morrisons said it is also planning to open convenience stores across the UK, opening 20 shops by the end of this year and another 50 next year after successful trials of the M Local format in Leeds, Manchester, and Birmingham.

"The recent market share data for the UK supermarkets has contained one clear and demonstrable alarm bell, to our minds at least, and that is the slowing sales momentum and widening under performance of Wm Morrison," said analysts at Shore Capital.

1,000 STORES MAYNOT SURVIVE XMAS,I ALSO SAW A PAPER/ART SHOP DOING A CLOSING DOWN SALE.

COMET IS TO SHUT 41 STORES.
I SAW A PICTURE OF A COMET RECEIPT WHERE THEY GOT THE SUMS WRONG(SAID 24.99,THEN SAID WAS £15,NOW £15),IF THEY CAN'T GET THEIR SUMS,MIGHT EXPLAIN THE DIRE STRAITS THEY ARE IN.

PREMIER FOODS ARE TO SACK 700? WORKERS AT THEIR HOVIS FACTORY.
I WONDER IF HP ARE GOING TO SACK WORKERS AFTER THEIR DISASTEROUS INVESTMENT.

Badboy wrote:PREMIER FOODS ARE TO SACK 700? WORKERS AT THEIR HOVIS FACTORY.
I WONDER IF HP ARE GOING TO SACK WORKERS AFTER THEIR DISASTEROUS INVESTMENT.

Badboy, I am afraid that after the Christmas rush to buy presents, there will be many more redundancies . The World is in recession now .

Just announced, 500 workers at Port Talbot to be made redundant due to the fall of orders for Steel. It really is a tragedy and it is said that one Steel worker creates 7 jobs in the Community.

Panda wrote:Just announced, 500 workers at Port Talbot to be made redundant due to the fall of orders for Steel. It really is a tragedy and it is said that one Steel worker creates 7 jobs in the Community.

YES IT IS TRAGIC

Badboy wrote:

Panda wrote:Just announced, 500 workers at Port Talbot to be made redundant due to the fall of orders for Steel. It really is a tragedy and it is said that one Steel worker creates 7 jobs in the Community.

YES IT IS TRAGIC

Badboy, 940 Steel jobs in the U.K. in total will be gone. I think the recession will deepen in the New Year when the Christmas spend is over.

Panda wrote:

Badboy wrote:

Panda wrote:Just announced, 500 workers at Port Talbot to be made redundant due to the fall of orders for Steel. It really is a tragedy and it is said that one Steel worker creates 7 jobs in the Community.

YES IT IS TRAGIC

Badboy, 940 Steel jobs in the U.K. in total will be gone. I think the recession will deepen in the New Year when the Christmas spend is over.

THEY RECKON 1,000 STORES WILL NOT SURVIVE INTO NEW YEAR.

Badboy wrote:

Panda wrote:

Badboy wrote:

Panda wrote:Just announced, 500 workers at Port Talbot to be made redundant due to the fall of orders for Steel. It really is a tragedy and it is said that one Steel worker creates 7 jobs in the Community.

YES IT IS TRAGIC

Badboy, 940 Steel jobs in the U.K. in total will be gone. I think the recession will deepen in the New Year when the Christmas spend is over.

THEY RECKON 1,000 STORES WILL NOT SURVIVE INTO NEW YEAR.

The problem is, there is a recession around the World , even China and now the emerging markets are slowing down.

Thomas Cook to face new cutbacks


The new Thomas Cook chief executive, Harriet Green, is to issue a warning that further costs need to be stripped from the ailing business as it prepares to unveil a second year of losses.








Full-year results on Friday are expected to reveal a second year of hefty headline losses





By Nathalie Thomas

7:00AM GMT 25 Nov 2012

2 Comments




Ms Green, who was parachuted in to the 171-year-old holiday company in July from electronics group Premier Farnell, will give investors the first taste of her recovery strategy as she spells out three key areas of focus on Wednesday.


Senior and middle management are expected to bear the brunt of the latest restructuring, while analysts believe the company could decide next year to shed further high street travel agents and some back- office operations.


Thomas Cook is part way through a two-year programme to shut 200 of its high street travel agencies.


Cost-cutting, technology and customer services will be the three main pillars of Ms Green’s first strategy presentation.


Precise details and targets will not be laid out until the spring but analysts expect the new chief executive and finance director, Michael Healy, also recruited in the summer, to take an aggressive approach to the measures that are needed – particularly in the UK business – to return the world’s oldest holiday company to health.



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Analysts at JPMorgan Cazenove have raised the prospect of £60m of restructuring costs in Thomas Cook’s new financial year, which runs from October to September 30 2013.

“I expect they will take a very determined and aggressive stance on what they can do,” said Investec analyst, James Hollins. “The turnaround process [in the UK] has been under way, but since Harriet and Michael have come in, I expect they will put their own thrust on it.”

Full-year results on Friday are expected to reveal a second year of hefty headline losses. Consensus estimates in the City point to underlying profits of £150m, but exceptional items will push the group into a pre-tax loss.

Last year, Thomas Cook sought an emergency cash injection from its lenders after slumping £398.2m into the red. At the halfway stage in March, losses had reached £712.9m, although tour operators and airlines always make the bulk of their profits during the key summer season.

So far Ms Green has the backing of the City, and analysts earlier this year welcomed the appointment of someone from outside the industry who could review some of the archaic structures and improve key areas such as online.

Since the new chief executive’s arrival, Thomas Cook has already pushed through a number of key measures to address the problems at the UK business in particular.

In October, the tour operator announced it would axe 430 jobs at its UK airline and slim down its fleet of aircraft from 35 to 31.

The group recently struck a deal with the low-cost carrier, easyJet, to block-book tens of thousands of seats on its aircraft – a move analysts believe signals a greater reliance on third-party carriers in future.

“Over time they will be making more use of third- party airlines,” said Charles Stanley analyst Douglas McNeill.

Several senior directors have quit the troubled UK business in recent months as Peter Fankhauser, head of the holiday giant’s operations in this country, prepares to unveil a new management structure later this week.

Departures include Simon Robinson, head of Thomas Cook’s retail joint venture with Co-operative Travel, and Ian Ailles, head of UK mainstream holidays.

Ms Green has previously warned that she intends to break down some of the “silos” in the UK business that “create cost and confusion and mismanagement”.