Waitrose staff in the supermarket chain's Stroud store have told Punchline-Gloucester.com of their distress and disbelief over changes to the hours that they work.

As the food giant braces itself for the final run-up to Christmas, two partner at the London Road store, say they have now been told they must work to new shift patterns or be prepared to quit their roles. As part of the John Lewis Parnership (JLP), Waitrose employs staff as partners, each with a share in the company, and staff have no trade union relationship.

Under conditions of anonymity, one partner told Punchline: "I have been with the store for a very long time and my hours have always been workable with my family needs. This change means I would be travelling alone to and from work at times when I would not feel safe. I have voiced this worry, but it has made no difference."

Another said: "It's all been a shock. We have always been able to take a lot of pride in working with the supermarket and this like-it-or-lump-it change feels like shattered trust."

Early details of an incoming UK-wide shake up to working hours for Waitrose were revealed in September, as the supermarket looked to streamline costs. Dubbed the 'Simpler Shops' project, staff were told of the plan via a video message sent to partners in late August.

In it, Waitrose retail director Tina Mitchell is said to have warned partners that some would need to make "sacrifices and compromises" and that the reshuffle could "result in some partners leaving the business". 

Waitrose is said to have calculated that, due to identified inefficiencies, each supermarket loses £400 per year for each full-time employee, with around a third of its total working hours being misplaced.

Food industry analyst The Grocer also reported in September that likely changes to shift patterns could include staff being asked to swap quieter shifts for slots when the store is busier, while some stores would be looking at cutting night-shift allocations.

A spokesperson for Waitrose told Punchline-Gloucester.com: "We've been working to make reasonable adjustments which consider the personal circumstances of our partners, so the process has always been a careful approach. No redundancies have been made at the store."

They added: "We have been talking to our Partners about their working hours since the summer to ensure we can deliver the very best customer service, by having more Partners in our shops at the times when customers are shopping. The vast majority of our Partners support these changes, which we're approaching with care and consideration of individual circumstances."

Elsewhere, the supermarket has stated: "We want to provide the very best service to our customers, and this means having the right amount of partners doing the right tasks at the right time.

"To do this, we're asking some partners across our shops to change their working pattern, and are proposing to cease night shifts at a small number of stores. This isn't something we take lightly and we'll be supporting our partners through any changes."

Waitrose has also indicated that it will not ask staff to adhere to changes that would have a "negative effect" on total pay and weekly working hours.

Employment changes at Waitrose are the latest in measures taken across the JLP, with chair, Dame Sharon White, seeking to tackle falling market share and losses. Recent changes have included the loss of some middle management posts in stores in 2021, as well as 1,500 head office jobs losses.

● At the end of 2022, the group revealed a £234m loss, with the consequence that it could not pay its annual partner bonus. Looking ahead, the group is looking to save up to £900m by 2026. Ms White, who is also seeking to boost JLP's earnings beyond retailing, is also reported to be looking at a scheme for the partnership to build up to 10,000 buy-to-let properties. Within the span of a five-year tenure as chair of the group, she signalled in October that she will retire from the role in 2025.