Hypermarket chain Quora is cutting more than 250 jobs

“The management is threatened with bankruptcy,” explains Elizabeth LoVecchio of ACV Puls. Starting in February, the workforce will be gradually reduced by more than 10 percent over four years. Lovcio stresses that no layoffs are expected, but early retirement is expected.

In Belgium, Cora has seven locations in Wallonia and Brussels, and a head office in Hainaut. Jobs will disappear in all locations. In Anderlecht, this applies to 30 full-time equivalents out of about 200 employees, and in Sint-Lambrechts-Voloy 37 out of 270 employees.

Shopping arcades

Management has assured unions that it will continue to operate all supermarkets, although almost all of them are making losses. “But the group also owns the shopping arcades around the supermarkets. As long as everyone remains profitable, management will continue to invest,” Lovecchio said. It is currently unclear whether this will also be the case after those four years.

During negotiations, the unions were able to secure sick pay, meal vouchers and additional vacation days for employees. On the other hand, employees will not get paid during their break periods. In September, it was announced that Louis Delhaize would divest its Match and Smatch department stores. This raised concerns among Quora employees, who also belong to the group.