Homebase will be closing four more high street stores in Northern Ireland in February, it has confirmed.
The high street DIY and homeware chain confirmed that all affected workers have - and will be - given at least two weeks' notice of their effective date of redundancy. This will come in the form of a letter sent to their homes, which the retailer has confirmed.
The company also noted that all wages and benefits will be paid for their period of employment, the Mirror reports. The local stores affected are Antrim, Belfast (Boucher Road), Craigavon and Galwally in south Belfast and are among 33 across the UK shutting their doors within weeks.
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Homebase shut 13 stores over January after falling into administration back in November last year. At the time, it had 133 UK stores and employed 3,600 staff. After the announcement, the Homebase brand was quickly sold to the Range and Wilko owner CDS. This deal included up to 70 locations and around 1,600 jobs.
The retailer later announced that another 74 sites had been put up for sale, with a deadline of November 29 set for bids. The 74 sites put up for sale included 62 in England, four in Scotland, and another four in Northern Ireland. Three stores in the Republic of Ireland and one in Wales were also put up for sale.
After the closures in January, the future of around 50 Homebase stores was still up in the air, and after today's confirmation - it leaves around 20 stores still at risk. However, Homebase administrator Teneo has not confirmed this figure and has not shared an update on the future of these sites. Earlier this year, BandQ agreed to buy five branches from the collapsed chain.
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