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UK – William Hill confirms 700 LBO closures are on the horizon

By - 5 July 2019

William Hill has confirmed it has entered into a consultation process with retail colleagues over plans to close around 700 licensed betting offices.

The group stated: “A large number of redundancies is anticipated with 4,500 colleagues at risk. The Group will look to apply voluntary redundancy and redeployment measures extensively and will be providing support to all colleagues throughout the process. This follows the Government’s decision to reduce the maximum stake on B2 gaming products to £2 on 1 April 2019. Since then the company has seen a significant fall in gaming machine revenues, in line with the guidance given when the Government’s decision was announced in May 2018.”

Subject to the outcome of the consultation process, shop closures are likely to begin before the end of the year.

Tom Blenkinsop, Operations Director at the betting shop workers union, Community, said: “This is devastating news for thousands of betting shop workers. We will be advising our members through the consultation process. William Hill should immediately engage with Community, so that their staff get additional support and advice during the consultation and all measures can be taken to minimise redundancies and find alternatives. The Government also has a role to play and must look at what support they can offer to workers whose jobs are threatened as a consequence of changes to the law around FOBTs.

“Betting shops provide an important source of local employment and many of our members have served the company loyally for years,” he added. “Workers don’t deserve to be the victims of the changes happening in the industry as a result of either government policy or the significant shift towards online gambling.”

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