Tag: Coles

Australian Supermarket CEO Warns Customers of ‘Gaps on the Shelf’ Amid Omicron Pressure

The CEO of one of Australia’s largest supermarket retail chains has written to customers warning of product shortages during the current wave of the Omicron variant, which has led to high staff numbers isolating and gaps in the company’s supply chains. “Unlike the surge buying of early 2020 (who could forget the toilet paper), this…


Major Supermarket Hit by ‘Round Three’ of Supply Chain Disruption

Australian supermarket Coles has admitted that the spread of Omicron, combined with COVID-19 isolation rules, has impacted its supply chains once again. Matthew Swindells, chief operations officer of Coles, said it was experiencing “round three” of supply chain disruption during the ongoing pandemic. “If you recall, round one of COVID-19 was about toilet paper—essentially higher…


Australian Supermarket Giant Allegedly Underpaid Staff by $115 Million

The Australian Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) launched legal action against supermarket giant Coles on Dec. 2 for allegedly underpaying more than 7,800 employees for a total of $115 million (US$82 million) between January 2017 and March 2020. FWO assessed disclosed information by Coles on wages and entitlements and alleged that the underpayments largely occurred because…


300,000 Australians to Be Vaccinated as Supermarket Giants Unveil Sweeping Mandate for Staff

Australia’s largest supermarket chains, Coles, Woolworths, and Aldi, have announced a vaccine mandate for all employees, encompassing around 300,000 individuals. The three grocery chains made the announcement on the same day, Oct. 21, amid a flurry of vaccine mandates issued from Australian state governments in recent days. Brad Banducci, CEO of the Woolworths Group, who…


Australian Supermarkets Run Short as Delta Forces Thousands of Workers Into Isolation

Shelves at major supermarket chains remain empty after thousands of workers were forced into self-isolation after coming into close contact with individuals infected with COVID-19. Customers uploaded photos of Australia’s two largest supermarket chains—Coles and Woolworths—showing shelves devoid of fruits, vegetables, meats, bread, and dairy products. One Twitter user wrote, “Coles in Katoomba is looking…


Aussies Could Soon Get Vaccinated at Local Woolies, Bunnings, or Officeworks

Australian businesses are putting up their hands to provide public vaccinations sites to their local communities as the rollout is expected to ramp up in September. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Lieutenant-General John Frewen met with business leaders to discuss how industries could get involved in the national vaccine rollout effort. “Commonwealth GPs and hubs, and…


Woolworths, Coles Pledge to Radically Reduce Plastic Waste in Ambitious Pact

Leading supermarket giants Woolworths and Coles are committing to ambitious goals to fight plastic waste through a vision of ensuring all plastic packaging are recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025. The two supermarket groups have joined 60 groups—including ALDI and Nestle—across the supply chain that have signed up to the ‘Australia, New Zealand and Pacific…