Kmart Lays Off More Employees, Nearly 800 Stores Affected
Sears is using everything in its power to keep the company from drowning, but in the latest turn of events the retailer laid off an unspecified number of full-time Kmart employees.
According to Business Insider, the layoffs were confirmed, noting that the employees let go were full-time managers or department heads in charge of driving, backrooms and customer-facing services at Kmart stores across the country.
Business Insider said a spokesman for the company declined to say how many people were affected by the cuts, but that not all Kmart stores were affected or witness employees being laid off.
“Eliminating positions is never an easy decision to make, and we don’t take it lightly as we recognize the valuable contributions affected associates make to the company,” spokesman Howard Riefs said to Business Insider.
According to two anonymous Kmart workers, Business Insider said that nearly 800 stores were affected by the cuts. On message boards, employees of the retailer say the stores now have “skeletal” staff and that the company has executed the layoffs as a way to keep the stores simple.
With the laying off process, employees say the retailer will most likely cease using backrooms and instead place items on the shelves.
Business Insider reported that some of the stores now just look like backrooms with boxes littering the sales floor.
Sears has been trying desperately to stay alive and this is the latest move in their fight. The month the company has sold its Craftsman brand of tools and borrowed money from CEO Eddie Lampert’s hedge fund.
Even with the borrowed money, Business Insider reported that Fitch Ratings believes the company will likely run out of funds during the 2017 fiscal year and will be required to raise another $2 billion in liquidity this year.
Currently there are seven Kmart stores still open for business in the Tampa Bay region and only two in the Orlando area. There are 39 total Kmart stores in Florida with the majority of them being in the Miami area.
