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The John Lewis Partnership is set to cut its partnership council by a quarter this autumn, reducing the number of members from 57 to 43, according to reports from The Telegraph.
The committee is an important part of the partnership’s democratic structure as staff that are elected to the council can have an input in how the business is run. In extreme cases the council has the power to remove the chair.
The Partnership is said to have informed staff that it has chosen to make changes to the current structure as it “relies too heavily on hierarchy and escalation”. It is believed that the retailer is set to bring back local forums where employees across its department stores and Waitrose supermarkets can put forward their views.
A John Lewis Partnership spokesperson said: “Whenever our three-year Council term concludes, we review how to make our democratic model even more effective. This will see a stronger focus on local forums to raise local Partner opinion alongside a tighter Partnership Council to support faster decision making. The updates have been made in close consultation with our partners – and the power of our Council, and the vital role it plays in governing our business remains unchanged.”
The move comes as the company looks to ramp up its turnaround plan aiming to improve productivity and speed up decision making.
Most recently, John Lewis reported that its profits had tripled to £126m in the year ended 25 January as sales rose 3% to £12.8bn, as it reached the halfway point of its turnaround.
Chair Jason Tarry said at the time that the business had made “good progress” but that there was “much more still to do”.
“This will involve considerable catch-up investment in our stores and supply chain, underpinned by a strong focus on the core elements of great retail, delivered by our brilliant partners,” he said.
The news also comes after the company faced calls from its staff to reinstate the bonuses which were last paid in FY22.
Some staff have now shared an open letter and launched a petition through Organise calling on bosses to bring back bonuses after the three-year hiatus. The campaign has attracted more than 4,000 signatures, including current and former John Lewis and Waitrose employees, as well as members of the public.
