Woolworths has announced it will close nearly 250 of its in-store supermarket butchers by March, as customers lean towards pre-packaged meat. Around 300 of the 1,000 Woolworths stores across Australia have an in-store butchery. Only 50 will remain open to offer over-the-counter services in major stores.
Team members that worked part-time in the butchery department will have their rosters adjusted to work in other supermarket departments. At the same time, staff that would be made redundant due to the change will be offered new roles with the company.
“We deeply regret the impact of this decision on the team members who work in our butcher shops, and we know many of them are well known by our regular customers,” said a company statement.
“Across all stores, we’ll continue to offer our customers high-quality fresh meat through our wide selection of pre-cut case-ready meats that are conveniently packaged to pick up on the go.”
