Next warns of Christmas shortages

Next warns of Christmas shortages as a lack of staff threatens deliveries.

Next have warned that shortages could be seen over Christmas due to a lack of seasonal staff. On Wednesday, September 29, Next commented that immigration laws need to be relaxed or retailers could struggle over Christmas.

So far the company has not experienced any recruitment problems. They have warned though that warehousing and logistics departments are “beginning to come under pressure”.

Next said: “Without some relaxation of immigration rules, we are likely to experience some degradation in our service in the run up to Christmas.”

The company also highlighted that the current crisis with the lack of lorry drivers “was foreseen, and widely predicted for many months”.

One expert has predicted that deliveries could be late over Christmas. Sophie Lund-Yates is an analyst at the Hargreaves Lansdown investment firm. She explained: “While things are stable at Next for now, a lack of foreign workers means some Christmas deliveries might take longer to arrive during the peak trading season.”

Next reportedly made a staggering £346million profit during the first six months of this year.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps has agreed for 5,000 HGV drivers to be given temporary visas. It is hoped that this will help the current fuel shortage. The visas though will only last until December 24.

The 5,000 visas will not help retailers including Next. The British Retail Consortium have called for the government to extend the “size and scope” of the visa scheme. They believe that it should be extended to HGV drivers in all areas of the retail industry.

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