Coles has announced that its Goulburn distribution centre is set to close in less than four months.
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The South Goulburn facility, which has been open since 2007, will cease operations on October 5.
A total of 147 team members are currently employed at the centre and have been given 16 weeks of notice.
A Coles spokesperson yesterday confirmed the closure to the Goulburn Post, and said that team members at the distribution centre have been informed about the decision.
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"Closure of the distribution centre was first announced on October 5, 2018, as part of Coles' supply chain modernisation strategy," the spokesperson said.
"Stock volumes currently processed at Goulburn will be managed at other Coles distribution centres, which have excess capacity following the outsourcing of liquor distribution.
"We will work with team members to explore redeployment opportunities for those who wish to continue working at Coles, and team members will also have access to employee assistance and outplacement support.
"Redundancies will also be offered to eligible team members in line with either the site exit agreement, which was approved by team members in December 2019, or their contract of employment."
Speculations have been going on for a while regarding the date for the closure of the distribution centre in Goulburn.
Mayor Bob Kirk said that it's disappointing to see these job losses in the community.
"Discussions revolving around the closure of the site had been going on for some time, so it did not come as a complete surprise. Council will continue to work with other new business opportunities that come to our attention and encourage them to come to Goulburn," he said.
Under the site exit agreement, redundancy provisions like four weeks' pay per year of completed service will be provided.
If the employee is over the age of 45, an additional one week's pay per year of completed service to a maximum of 10 weeks' pay will be given. The maximum amount payable is 80 weeks' pay.
Coles employs over 700 team members in the region across five supermarkets, six liquor stores and eight Coles Express convenience sites.
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