'We sincerely believe it's better this way': Tesco forced to defend cash registers after backlash

Tesco CEO Ken Murphy said wage growth is likely to continue. Credit: Parsons Media/Reuters

A petition to halt the deployment, started by a disability activist, has garnered nearly 250,000 signatures since last May.

Critics object to the technology on the grounds that people without credit cards , the elderly and many people with disabilities are more difficult to use. .

Customers threatened to protest the cashier change at the annual general meeting, though no demonstration was ultimately held.

On Friday, Mr. Murphy tried to allay concerns by saying the rollout poses no threat to jobs. at Tesco.

He said, “By the way, this is not meant to replace people. Vice versa. All our employees are trained to multi-task in the store.

“We realized that in most cases we can use self-checkouts to free people from activities in stores, make sure goods are on the shelves, help people find items if they need them and make sure shopping is a good shopping trip.”

Mr. Murphy was speaking as Tesco released a trade update that welcomed «encouraging early signs» that price increases for many essentials are starting to ease. .

1406 food inflation

However, the head of Tesco warned buyers not to expect prices to return to two-year-old levels.

The supermarket recently slashed the prices of everyday items such as broccoli and bread by as much as 16 percent, and Mr Murphy said the changes are «a good indication that we hope prices will continue to come down through the end of the year.» .

The cost of other staples, including milk and pasta, has been reduced at Tesco in recent months after wholesale prices began to decline.

But shoppers are still paying significantly higher prices. than they were at this time last year. According to Trolley.co.uk, a pint of milk now costs 90p in its stores, up from 65p last year.

Not all wholesale prices are down and Tesco has warned prices for potatoes, coffee and rice remain subject to inflation given the volatility of the global crop.

Even if the current bout of inflation subsides completely, Mr Murphy said it's unlikely store prices will «return to where they were before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. .

Wages have risen sharply across the economy, making it difficult to lower prices even as raw material costs decline.