NEW YORK, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- U.S. electronics retailer Best Buy is in the process of slashing thousands of mid-level managers nationwide, the New York Post reported Wednesday.
The newspaper said one of its sources said the cost-cutting move, being enacted after sales fell 2.6 percent during the Christmas shopping season, could affect upward of 2,000 employees.
About 500 field managers learned of the cuts last week with more employees expected to be get pink slips by next week, one source told the newspaper.
"This is ripping off the Band-Aid," a Minneapolis source told the Post.
No store-closings are expected, however, the Post's sources said.
In an internal memo sent to employees last week and seen by the Post, Chief Executive Officer Hubert Joly indicated there would be "field leadership changes" designed to reduce head count in a "thoughtful, purposeful way."
Best Buy, which is slated to release its quarterly earnings Thursday, had no comment on the situation, the Post said.
The retailer, which has its headquarters in suburban Minneapolis, has 1,056 big-box stores and regional offices, and about 180,000 employees.
