Nestlé UK has announced that it is axing 450 jobs across the country.
The redundancies are part of its decision to reduce its global workforce by 16,000.
The company says it can’t yet say whether York will be affected – but the GMB union says it will be hit.
In a statement, the GMB said: “The majority of jobs – among staff and managers – will go in York and Gatwick, but factories across the UK could be affected.”
Charlotte Brumpton-Childs, GMB national secretary, said: “These job cuts will rip the heart out of communities.
“Nestle workers – who make some of the UK’s best loved treats – have already put up with years of uncertainty and job losses.
“GMB will working closely with members and the company to ease the pain of these cuts as much as possible.”
A Nestlé spokesperson said: “We said in 2025 that we will reduce our global workforce by 16,000 roles and that process is ongoing.
“As always, we will manage any changes in the right way and in consultation with our people. Any proposed changes will always be shared with those affected first and we have no further update to give at this time.”
Nestle has unveiled plans to cut around 16,000 jobs around the world over the next two years last October.
It is turning to automation to help reduce costs.
The reductions would include around 12,000 “white-collar professionals” across business functions and geographies.
This was expected to save the company around £940 million each year by the end of 2027.
It was also targeting a further 4,000 job cuts across its manufacturing and supply chain.
Nestle, which makes household food brands such as KitKat, Nescafe and Cheerios, has about 277,000 employees in countries across the world.
It had nearly 4,200 employees in the UK business at the end of 2024, according to its most recent accounts, within its head office in Gatwick and at the York-based site that makes KitKats.
Philipp Navratil, Nestle’s chief executive, said: “The world is changing, and Nestle needs to change faster.
“This will include making hard but necessary decisions to reduce headcount over the next two years. We will do this with respect and transparency.
“The actions we are taking will secure Nestle’s future as a leader in our industry.
“Collectively, they will enable us to improve our overall performance and deliver shareholder value.”
