HUNDREDS of jobs are at risk at the supermarket giant Asda after it announced plans to cut costs in the new year.

National newspaper The Guardian has reported in order to "close the gap" between itself and rivals Aldi and Lidl, 842 section leader roles at Asda could go.

With a consultation period with its workers now under way, Asda is said to be looking how it can redeploy its workers, potentially on reduced rates. But, the possibility of redundancies is still thought to be on the table.

A document given to Asda staff, which was seen by The Guardian, read: "We would explore redeployment opportunities, and only as a last resort, we would look at the possibility of redundancy with affected colleagues."

This is just the latest cost-cutting measure that the store has undertaken in recent months. This summer jobs were lost at 18 of the chain's lowest performing stores, and there were also job losses at its head office.

It is not yet known if the Barrow branch of Asda, in Walney Road, will be affected by this news.