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Taxpayers are set to pay millions of pounds to laid off staff at The Body Shop as the restructuring of the collapsed chain gets underway, The Telegraph has reported.
Employees who have lost their jobs have reportedly been told to make claims through the government-backed redundancy payments service, which is funded through National Insurance contributions.
Earlier this week, administrators at FRP Advisory announced that they expected to close nearly half of The Body Shop’s 198 stores at the end of its restructuring plans in a bid to secure the future of the retailer.
After years of unprofitability and following a full evaluation of The Body Shop’s UK business, joint administrators Geoff Rowley and Alastair Massey concluded that the current store portfolio mix is no longer viable.
The seven stores immediately impacted were the London stores in Surrey Quays, Oxford Street Bond Street, Canary Wharf and Cheapside, as well as shops in Nuneaton in Warwickshire, Ashford Town Centre in Kent, and Bristol Queens Road in Bristol.
It is not yet known which locations will remain open, with the business employing more than 2,200 people across the UK.
According to The Telegraph, only staff who have worked for the company for two years or more will qualify for redundancy pay. Payments are capped at around £643 a week before tax, meaning that higher earners at the business, such as those in head office, will lose out.
FRP previously said that the head office headcount is expected to reduce by approximately 40%, to a future headcount of over 400 full time employees
FRP Advisory has been contacted for further comment regarding the redundancy payments.
