JCPenney cuts 1,000 jobs as chain shrinks
FILE - This May 8, 2020 file photo shows an empty parking lot at a JC Penney store in Roseville, Mich. U.S. retail sales tumbled 16.4% from March to April as business shutdowns caused by the coronavirus kept shoppers away, threatened stores across the country and weighed down a sinking economy.[AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File]
JCPenney says it will cut 1,000 jobs as it tries to fight its way out from under bankruptcy protection.
The company last month said it had identified just over 150 stores for closure in the first phase of a restructuring in which it will become a smaller operator.
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The retailer said Wednesday that the jobs to be eliminated will include corporate, field management and international positions.
Penney filed for bankruptcy protection in May. It had been struggling prior to the coronavirus pandemic, but like many retailers, the virus outbreak intensified their difficulties. Other retailers to file for bankruptcy recently include J. Crew, Neiman Marcus, Brooks Brothers and Sur La Table.
As part of its bankruptcy reorganization, Penney has said it plans to permanently close nearly a third of its 846 stores in the next two years. That would leave it with just over 600 locations.