Following A&P’s announcement to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July, the grocery store operator is now expected to notify all of its employees of impending layoffs.
As a result of facing increasingly tough competition, A&P will be selling off its 297 stores and letting go of approximately 28,500 employees.
Last Monday, Judge Robert Drain who is presiding over the bankruptcy case, granted approval for A&P to auction off 118 store locations and to close the remaining 25 stores. The sale of the 118 stores could total $600 million and names like Acme Markets, Stop & Shop, and Key Foods are currently suspected to be “stalking horse” bidders for those locations.
According to a number of union sources, A&P will be issuing Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) to all of its employees, which will include all of the members in stores that are sold and in stores that scheduled to close or not yet sold.
The federal WARN act entails that employers must provide a 60-days notice in advance of facility closings and mass layoffs.
