Technology · 26 May 2026
19 applicants for one Next job: The hidden costs driving competition
christopher deane via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Young people are facing tougher competition for shop work as fewer beginner roles become available across Britain. On Tuesday, Next chief executive Lord Wolfson said applications for store vacancies had risen from 10 to 19 in two years. He linked the change to higher employment costs, planned limits on zero-hours contracts and increased automation in shops across the retail sector in Britain.
Reported by The Guardian · How we write briefs