Stockmann to furlough 870 employees

The retail giant Stockmann announced on Thursday its intention to to begin a codetermination negotiation on furloughing of staff.

The negotiation will cover about 870 employees at its sales and distribution centres in Finland following the impact of the coronavirus situation, said the company in a press release.

The temporary layoffs would last for up to 90 days and the company estimated to save three million euros during the year 2021.

The codetermination talks will start on 16 February, which is expected to be completed in two weeks.

“The coronavirus pandemic made a significant impact on the business, particularly reflected in the customer flows of Stockmann department stores and distributing centres,” said Director (Sale) of Stockmann in Finland Niko Pesonen.

The negotiations, however, do not concern the customer service unit and do not affect the operation of the e-commerce, added the press release.