Whitbread to axe jobs in a bid to streamline company

Hotel and leisure company Whitbread has slashed more than a quarter of head-office jobs in a bid to streamline its business, the company announced today.

In its half year results to 1 September 2005, Whitbread said that it would be removing 250 brand and corporate roles from its head offices, resulting in £25m-worth of savings.

Chief executive Alan Parker said that the company had already made senior management changes to make it "a new and leaner organisation".

He said the new job cuts were a result of maximising the Group's economies of scale across its shared services, such as property, finance, human resources, information services and communications.

In its latest financial figures, Parker said that its high-street brands Pizza Hut and TGI Fridays have struggled in the past six months suffering from "disappointing sales".

The overall performance of this division was boosted by a strong performance from Costa, which is expected to grow by 100 sites this year. Revenue for the sector was £112.1m, an increase from £105.5m against the same period the previous year.

Revenue for its pub restaurants was £315.6m up from £305.5m for the same period last year, but like-for-like sales were down by 1.2%, due to increasing utilities and staff costs.

Its hotel division performed well with Premier Travel Inn growing strongly following its integration. Revenue was up by £67.2m to £206.9m for the same period last year. Like-for-like sales were up by 7.7% to £71.8m.

By Emily Manson

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