Tesco plays down job cuts report

Tesco, Britain's biggest retailer, played down a newspaper report on Saturday that it was considering cutting 39,000 store staff over the next three years, saying it had no current plans to lay off more employees.

The Guardian newspaper said the job reduction proposals were revealed in a leaked document detailing a programme called "Project Pace", an extract of which was posted on the website verylittlehelps.com, a forum used by Tesco staff.

Tesco confirmed the validity of the document but said it modelled a number of scenarios.

"This is not a new programme of job losses, and we are not announcing one," a Tesco spokesman said.

"We do not comment on rumours other than to say that we are transforming Tesco into an organisation that meets the needs of customers in a rapidly changing retail sector and as such continue to plan accordingly."

Chief Executive Dave Lewis, who joined in September 2014, is trying to turn Tesco around with a focus on lower prices and improved product availability and customer service. He has also sold assets and cut costs - including thousands of jobs.

In the UK it operates more than 3,500 stores and has over 310,000 employees. It is Britain's biggest private sector employer.

Last month Tesco reported better than expected Christmas trading, while industry data published this month also showed an improving trend.