Reliance JioMart fires 1,000 people, bigger layoff expected ahead

JioMart, the online wholesale platform of Reliance Industries, has laid off more than 1,000 workers as it aligns its operations with the recently acquired Metro Cash and Carry.

This is a component of a bigger cost-cutting plan that will take place over the next weeks and involve slashing the 15,000 employees in the wholesale sector

'The company has asked over 1,000 people on the ground including 500 executives at its corporate office to resign over the past few days. It also plans to have another large round of layoffs with hundreds of employees already put on performance improvement plan (PIP), Economic Times reported through sources.

'Rest of the sales employees have been put on variable pay structure after Reliance lowered their fixed pay salary,' ET added.

According to them, the business intends to close more than half of the 150 or so fulfilment centres that provide groceries and other items to neighbourhood stores.

Last week, German retailer Metro AG announced that Reliance Retail had purchased its 31-store Indian cash and carry operation from Metro AG for a total of Rs 2,850 crore.

Traditional wholesalers for kirana stores have been replaced by Reliance's business-to-business (B2B) approach. Roles at the backend and in online sales operations will overlap with those of Metro's 3,500 permanent employees, as reported by Economic Times.