Job Vacancies at Sainsburys

Sainsbury’s is currently the third largest of the UK’s supermarket chains with 16.4% of the total market, slightly behind Asda’s 16.7%. Sainsbury’s - as J.Sainsbury plc supermarket chain is popularly known - has recovered much of its market position, having enjoyed 12 consecutive quarters of sales’ growth since Justin King was appointed CEO in 2004.

Sainsbury’s maintain that they have five principles guiding their corporate approach, the fifth of which is that it should be ‘a great place to work’ and they have many occupational opportunities in a wide-ranging field.

The very first Sainsbury store was in Drury lane, Holborn in London, which opened in 1869, and it is in the same Holborn area that the thriving headquarters, known as the Store Support Centre, is still located. The Store Support Centre has the responsibility of supporting the 780 Sainsbury’s supermarkets and convenience stores - known as Sainsbury’s Local and Sainsbury’s Central - throughout the country, catering for 16 million shoppers and a product range of over 23,000. Many of Sainsbury’s 148,000 employees are based in Holborn. The employment areas in the Support Centre are categorised under the following general headings: Buying and Trading, Corporate and Change, Corporate and Social, responsibility, Customer and Marketing, Finance and Accounting, Food Technology and Product, Human resources, IT, Legal, PA, Secretarial and Administration, Property, Sainsbury’s to You, Sainsbury’s Bank, Security and Loss Protection, Store Support and Supply Chain and Distribution.

There are, in addition, Distribution Centres in Corby, Basingstoke, Charlton, Hams Hall, Haydock, New Rye Park and Waltham Point in which there are warehouse, driving and technical positions.

Sainsbury’s has a thriving Graduate employment scheme, with opportunities in many diverse areas, offering excellent packages for graduates with starting salaries ranging from £21,000 to £22,500, depending on the scheme adopted. Currently, schemes are available in Retail, the Supply Chain, Human resources, Finance, Customer and Marketing, Buying, Pharmacy, Product technology, Product development, Property, Commercial, Information Technology and Location Planning. The entry requirements for each scheme vary but further details can be found on the Sainsbury’s website at www.sainsburys.co.uk.

There are additionally opportunities for school leavers to gain employment and qualifications at Sainsbury’s. For example, there is a new Bakery Apprenticeship Scheme, lasting between 12 and 18 months, which results in the award of a Bakery Apprenticeship (the equivalent of 5 GCSE grades at A to C). Details of this scheme can be found at www.schoolsoutforsainsburys.co.uk.

Those people who left school after A levels for the world of work rather than university can also take Retail Management Training schemes, with the possibility of becoming a department manager within 9 to 18 months. There is more information about this on the website in the GetAhead section.

There are also many instore roles offering employment in a variety of departments within the 780 branches of Sainsbury’s. Application forms can be picked up from the Customer Service desks in the stores themselves and the stores at Fosse Park (Leicester), Cheadle, Maidenhead, Taplow, Hornchurch, Dalston, Finchley Road, Merton, South Woodford, Stanmore and Whitechapel all offer the possibility of making applications online.