Asda to Outsource 3,500 Cleaning Jobs to Contractors

The Leeds-headquartered supermarket will transfer its in-store cleaners to two contractors, a move the GMB union has condemned as ‘detestable’

Asda is to outsource around 3,500 in-store cleaning jobs to external contractors, in the latest cost-cutting move by the Leeds-headquartered supermarket. The company, whose head office is at Asda House on Great Wilson Street, will transfer its cleaning staff to Bidvest, covering northern England and Scotland, and NIC Services covering the south. The retailer says no redundancies are planned and that staff will move across under TUPE rules, which protect existing terms. The GMB union has condemned the decision, calling it ‘detestable’ and urging the company to halt the process.

Why This Matters For Leeds

As one of Leeds’ largest private employers this affects 3,500 workers directly and is the latest in a run of cost-cutting moves as the business fights to turn itself around amid falling sales and heavy debt. How the company manages this restructuring, and whether the turnaround succeeds, has real consequences for the local economy.

What Asda Is Changing

The supermarket informed staff on 11 August and aims to complete the transfer by 1 October. Alongside the change, the company has promised customers cleaner facilities, steam-cleaned trolleys and baskets and greater use of robotic cleaning technology, framing the move as a route to what it called the cleanest stores in retail. Affected staff are expected to be offered transfers to one of the two providers under the Transfer of Undertakings regulations, known as TUPE, which are designed to preserve pay, holiday entitlement and length of service when a job moves to a new employer. The company has stated that no redundancies are planned as part of the proposal.

“Outsourcing companies have a proven track record of slashing pay, terms, conditions and even jobs as soon as they have their feet under the table.”

— Rachelle Wilkins, Organiser, GMB Union

A Turnaround Under Pressure

The GMB has called on the retailer to pause the plan, noting it had asked in April whether further outsourcing was coming and been told no. It also pointed to an earlier decision to outsource around 1,700 in-store security staff to Mitie, which the union says eventually led to about 300 job losses. The cleaning announcement is part of a wider restructuring under executive chairman Allan Leighton, who returned in 2024 to lead a turnaround at a business that has been losing market share to rivals. Its sales have continued to slide; down 1.1% in the 12 weeks to mid-July, even as the wider grocery market grew, and its share has fallen to around 11.5%. The retailer, owned by TDR Capital and the Issa family since a 2021 buyout from Walmart, has been cutting costs across the business, including around 150 head-office roles in Leeds earlier this year, as it services debt and funds price cuts.