Woolworths moving jobs offshore as costs rise

Woolworths is set to move a number of corporate jobs offshore as the supermarket giant aims to cut costs for customers amid rising competition online.

“Our customers are telling us they need more help managing their budgets as growing inflationary pressures impact the cost of living,” a Woolworths spokesperson told nine.com.au.

“To continue our commitment to deliver the dependable low prices and better shopping experiences our customers expect, and to remain competitive with the rapid expansion of international players in the market, we are focused on removing complexity, increasing productivity and driving efficiency across our business.”

Woolworths has had personnel located throughout Asia for a number of years, with today’s announcement seeing an expansion of those preexisting arrangements.

“We regularly review these (arrangements) to ensure we are accessing the best global capabilities and lowering our costs, to ensure we are offering the best value for our customers,” the spokesperson said.

Nine.com.au understands today is day one of a consultation period that will involve discussions with several teams in IT, HR and finance, likely across a period of several months.

No customer-facing jobs will be moved, and no store or distribution centre staff will be cut as part of the restructure.

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Woolworths has not revealed how many corporate jobs will be shifted overseas, but it’s a move in line with a number of Woolworths’ international competitors including Amazon, Tesco, and Walmart, all of whom maintain extensive staffing in Asia.

Woolworths themselves have support offices in Hong Kong, China, Bangladesh, India and the Philippines.

The major supermarkets have also been affected by fuel spikes amid the ongoing war between the US and Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Higher fuel prices have added to transport costs along the supply chain, while customer budgets are also already stretched on the demand end.

Before the outbreak of conflict, Woolworths reported a 16 per cent jump in net profits in February, its half-year earnings rising to $859 million.

The result was largely due to expanding margins in its supermarket stores.

But online competitors such as Amazon are also encroaching on the supermarkets’ traditional turf, along with lower-priced alternatives such as Aldi.

Woolworths Group, which also owns Big W, is Australia’s largest private sector employer with just over 200,000 staff across Australia and New Zealand.

The company is set to open 24 new Woolworths stores in the coming year in both countries, mostly Australia, which are expected to generate a further 2500 new jobs.