Kraft, A&P moves mean layoffs, relocations

Kraft Foods and the parent company of A&P Fresh food marts last week both disclosed consolidations that will affect hundreds of Westchester employees.

On Jan. 17, Kraft announced that it would reduce its U.S. management center locations from four to two, moving its Tarrytown beverages unit and its East Hanover, N.J., Planters brand unit to the company”™s Chicago-area headquarters.

Roughly 225 of the Tarrytown location”™s 440 employees will have their positions shifted to Northfield, Ill., by December 2012, with another 140 employees who work in research and development staying in the area, according to Kraft spokesman Michael Mitchell.

Those whose jobs are being moved will likely be given the option of transferring, the company said. The fate of the remaining 75 Tarrytown employees has yet to be determined.

The move is part of the company”™s corporate spin-off plan that entails the splitting of its North American-based snacks and grocery businesses into two independent public companies.

“Consolidating our management locations is a sound business move,” said Tony Vernon, president of Kraft Foods North America and CEO of the future grocery company. “Having the majority of our business units together in one location will provide greater development opportunities for our people and will help us continue building our brands more efficiently and collaboratively.”

The realignment will result in the cutting of roughly 1,600 positions ”“ primarily from sales ”“ in North America over the course of the year, the company said.

In a Jan. 9 announcement, The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company Inc., parent company of A&P Fresh food marts, said it would be closing 14 stores in four states as the company prepares to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The closings will include seven food marts in Westchester and Suffolk counties, resulting in 543 layoffs, according to a Jan. 17 filing with the New York State Labor Department.

Among those seven stores are food marts in Mount Vernon and Armonk, which currently employ 216 people and 44 people, respectively.

The company noted that the Armonk closing is unrelated to its reorganization plan, and instead is the result of the store”™s lease expiring.

The Armonk location will close on Feb. 1, while the other six locations will close on April 9, according to Labor Department records.

A&P President and CEO Sam Martin attributed the 14 bankruptcy-related closings to faltering revenue numbers.

“As part of our preparations to emerge from Chapter 11, we have decided to close these 14 underperforming locations. While this was a very difficult decision that will unfortunately impact some of our customers, partners, associates and the surrounding communities, these actions are absolutely necessary,” Martin said in a statement.