Popular sofa chain DFS has confirmed it is considering plans to close one of their Welsh distribution centres. The company said it is proposing consolidating its Cardiff distribution centre into their Bristol site as part of an “ongoing project.”
DFS has confirmed that workers were informed verbally – either face to face or via a call with management if that wasn’t possible. The company said affected employees will be offered "redeployment" within the chain's network.
A spokesperson for DFS said: "We can confirm that a proposal to consolidate our Cardiff distribution centre into our Bristol site is under consideration. This proposal is part of an ongoing project to create fewer but bigger regional super sites.
“The welfare of our Cardiff staff is our top priority and consultation is currently taking place. Should the closure move ahead, all affected employees will be offered redeployment within our network should they wish to relocate." For the latest Cardiff news, sign up to our newsletter here
Elsewhere in the UK, some DFS workers in Doncaster staged a demonstration earlier this month after union members accused bosses of treating staff like “cut-price sofas” by slashing hours, according to the Doncaster Free Press. Workers at the firm’s factory in Carcroft held a protest, with union GMB saying staff have had contracted hours cut by a fifth, the newspaper reported.
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But a spokesperson said the factory's closure had been pre-planned, adding: “At DFS we hand make the majority of our sofas to order, many of them in our own factories in the UK. Volumes vary throughout the year and we often see a peak in the winter months and lower volumes in the summer months.
“In line with most other upholstery manufacturers, on occasion we ask our factory team to flex their working hours. This includes taking annual leave or banking hours which means that people get paid now but work the hours in the winter when there are higher order numbers needing to be fulfilled therefore, maintaining consistency in pay. Weekly pay is not affected by this and in fact by the end of July, all employees will receive a pay rise of at least 5%.”
