Britain's John Lewis to recruit for 10,000 jobs

People queue outside a John Lewis a store announcing a seasonal sale, in London·Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - British retailer the John Lewis Partnership said on Friday it is recruiting for more than 10,000 jobs over the coming months - 1,700 permanent positions and over 8,400 seasonal roles.

The employee-owned partnership trades from 34 John Lewis department stores and a chain of 329 Waitrose food stores.

It wants over 2,900 seasonal workers for the department stores and over 2,800 for Waitrose, plus a further 2,700 workers for its warehouses and to deliver goods.

Britain's labour market has been tight over the last year but is showing some signs of cooling. However, official data published earlier this month showed basic wages hit a new record growth rate.

The John Lewis Partnership, which reported a 234 million pound loss in its 2022-23 year, is half way through a five-year recovery plan and has said it may seek external investment.

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Frances Kerry)