Hundreds of Edinburgh workers could lose jobs as H&M 'set to close' call centre

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Hundreds of Edinburgh workers could be set to lose their jobs due to the proposed closure of a call centre.

Clothing chain H&M is understood to have told staff yesterday they could soon be out of work amid plans to shut its Waverley Gate office when the lease runs out at the start of next year.

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Under a document seen by the Evening News which is supposedly a timeline for a redundancy consultation, the firm’s workforce in the Capital would leave their roles in December.

One worker, who asked to remain anonymous described the supposed job cuts as ‘incredibly cruel’, claiming staff were informed of the news in a ‘four-minute meeting’.

It is understood H&M could close its Waverley Gate call centreIt is understood H&M could close its Waverley Gate call centre
It is understood H&M could close its Waverley Gate call centre | Google

They told the Evening News: “We pioneered working from home when the pandemic hit (and before). At one point we functioned without the centre entirely.”

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The worker claimed the jobs would be taken over by ‘outsourced agents’ and insisted that the work could be carried out remotely.

They added: “We apparently have a say in this still, so what are we supposed to beg them to renew the lease or beg them to let us work from home? I have a mortgage, health bills, debts.”

A H&M spokeswoman said: “We constantly evaluate how we operate to ensure that we deliver on our goals and contribute to the overall success of the company.

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“The current lease agreement for our customer service site in Edinburgh will end in March 2025.

“In connection with the lease soon ending, we looked into the scope of our operational set-up at the site to ensure that it is flexible and cost-efficient given current and future change in demands.

“As this is an ongoing process, we cannot share more details, but we are doing everything we can to support colleagues who are affected.”

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