Job offers come in for laid-off Kaiapoi workers

5:16 pm on 10 September 2010

Workers laid off at the quake-hit Kaiapoi New World say job offers have already come in from other firms.

The 34 full-time and 52 part-time staff at Kaiapoi New World supermarket lost their jobs because the supermarket, which was halfway through a big refurbishment, was severely damaged in Saturday's 7.1 quake and has to be demolished.

Head checkout supervisor Judy Nathan says five of those staff have lost their homes in the earthquake.

But she says the Warehouse, rival supermarket chain Progressive Enterprises and other New World stores have offered jobs to the workers.

The Warehouse says it has begun recruiting for Christmas and any of the laid-off workers will have their applications put at the top of the pile.

Waimakariri Mayor Ron Keating says his guess is that 150 to 200 people in the area will be laid off because of the effects of the earthquake, but he expects repair and construction work will provide new jobs.