Amazon to shut three UK warehouses, putting 1,300 jobs at risk

Amazon has announced plans to shut three of its 30-plus UK warehouses and seven small delivery sites, affecting more than 1,300 jobs.

Workers from the large warehouses in Doncaster, Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire and Gourock in western Scotland will be offered roles at other Amazon locations.

It is thought unlikely that many of the 300 workers at the Gourock site will want to relocate as there is not another Amazon facility nearby, as is the case with the Doncaster and Hertfordshire fulfilment centres.

Staff from the seven delivery sites, which each employ at least 20 people working with van drivers taking items to homes, are expected to move to other sites nearby. Facilities in Huntingdon, Horley, Newcastle, Birmingham and Hemel Hempstead will permanently close while old sites in Portsmouth and Aylesford will shift to new buildings nearby.

The closures of the older sites come as Amazon prepares to open new delivery warehouses in Peddimore in the West Midlands and Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, which will employ 2,500 people.

Amazon announced last week that it planned to cut 18,000 jobs around the world, mostly in its head offices, in an effort to become more efficient under Andrew Jassy, who took over as chief executive in summer 2021.

The changes come as shoppers rein in spending and the online retailer faces global economic uncertainty. The company took on staff in recent years as it expanded into new fields, including groceries, own-label technology and fashion.