Workers at fire-destroyed New World facing redundancy

Dozens of supermarket workers could be facing redundancy after a fire destroyed the New World Victoria Park store in central Auckland.

The massive blaze two weeks ago took more than 10 hours to put out and left the building badly damaged with a collapsed ceiling.

The New World employs more than 180 people.

The supermarket has so far continued to pay the staff, but First Union, which represents about 40 of the workers, told RNZ's Checkpoint there's now a proposal to make all the workers redundant.

Some will have the opportunity to work at other stores.

Foodstuffs North Island confirmed in a statement that the process of disestablishing roles at the store is underway.

It said it's supporting staff to find new roles, including positions at nearby stores, at its support centre, and distribution centres.

It comes after Foodstuffs North Island confirmed it would bring forward the opening of New World Pt Chevalier following the Victoria Park fire.

The Pt Chevalier store, originally scheduled to open on September 9, will now open earlier, with the team working towards an opening date of August 19.

Foodstuffs North Island chief executive Chris Quin said the damage to New World Victoria Park was extensive, and the store was expected to be out of operation for approximately two years while significant rebuild work takes place.

He said the new Pt Chevalier store will be the closest New World option for many affected Victoria Park shoppers, especially those in surrounding suburbs.

"Since the fire, we've heard from so many locals who told us how much they'll miss Victoria Park. Some even described it as their 'extended pantry'," he said.

"We know how important it is to have access to a full-service grocery store in the area, and bringing forward the opening of New World Pt Chevalier is one way we can help meet that need."

Foodstuffs North Island said it is expected some staff from the Victoria Park store will have opportunities at the new Pt Chevalier supermarket while others are being redeployed elsewhere in the company.

"We're actively prioritising affected team members in recruitment across our network," he said.

"It's been a challenging time for the Victoria Park team. Our goal is to support them into a new opportunity and ensure they feel looked after through this transition."

Foodstuffs North Island said it is working with the owner-operators of Victoria Park and its wider co-operative network to support affected staff in finding new roles, including positions in nearby stores, its support centre, and distribution centres.

The company also confirmed the fire investigation work was completed, with Foodstuffs next week beginning to process of removing damaged parts of the building to make it safe for teams to begin clearing stock and equipment from the store.

By Victor Waters for rnz.co.nz