A training initiative at C&A that was intended to
improve the employability of staff after the company closes its UK operation
has resulted in a turnaround in profitability.
Every one of C&A’s 5,000 employees in the UK has
received two hours of intensive job-search training on interview techniques and
CV writing.
The company has also set up a special department and an
exclusive web site to find new jobs for its employees after its UK operation
winds down on Saturday.
The web site will run for the next two years, allowing
former employees to stay in touch with one another and will provide a hyperlink
to an on-line jobs service that brings employers and recruitment firms in
contact with jobseekers.
HR director Suzanne Chevous told Personnel Today that 70 per
cent of the firm’s 5,000 UK employees have already found new jobs.
She said, “In total, we provided around 33,000 hours of
training for the whole staff.
“Many of these people have only ever worked at C&A,
because we have a very low staff turnover.”
In 1998 the company reported it was £60m in the red – but as
a result of the training initiative and revised performance-related bonus
scheme, Chevous said C&A will close after returning profits of £4m for the
last year.
In August C&A opted to close its UK operation after it
made £250m losses over a five-year period.
By Richard Staines
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