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Some 125,515 retail jobs have been lost since the start of 2020, according to the latest data from the Centre for Retail Research (CRR).
Of this figure, 43,381 jobs were lost through administrations, 10,556 through CVAs and 71,578 through rationalisation schemes.
The UK’s embattled high street has also seen the closure of 13,868 retail stores in the nine months to 1 September. When broken down, 5,675 sites were shuttered due to administrations, 508 through CVAs and 7,685 retail premises closed as a result of store rationalisation programmes.
It comes after CBI’s latest monthly Distributive Trades Survey revealed retail employment has fallen at its fastest rate since February 2009, in the year to August 2020.
The survey – which featured 63 retailers among its 128 respondents – also showed a slight fall in retail sales compared with a year ago, which comes after broadly flat sales in the year to July, while a faster fall is expected next month.
The decline was broad-based across sectors, with only grocers, furniture and carpets, non-store and ‘other’ goods sales seeing growth.
Alpesh Paleja, CBI lead economist, said at the time: “The furlough scheme has proved effective at insulating workers and businesses in some of the worst-hit sectors during the pandemic, but these findings reinforce fears that many job losses have been delayed rather than avoided.”
