Skift Take
It's a big blow for the majority of Chipotle's corporate employees who have called Denver home for decades. CEO Brian Niccol has a lot to prove as he uproots the company and takes a select number of people with him to Newport Beach.
— Erika Adams
Chipotle has laid off or offered relocation packages to 399 corporate employees in the process of closing down its Denver headquarters, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed today with Colorado’s Department of Labor.
In New York, 32 employees were given similar notices as the company prepares to close its Manhattan office. In total, 431 corporate employees were either served severance packages or offers to move to the company’s new headquarters in Newport Beach, California.
Chipotle declined to provide information on how many people who were laid off and how many people were offered relocation packages out of over 400 employees affected by the move. However, it’s likely that only a few received offers to stay with the company. The WARN notice included a list of job titles among the affected employees and only a handful were categorized as executives who would be more likely to receive the offer to move to Newport Beach. Colorado’s public list of WARN notices went ahead and categorized all 399 employees as laid off.
All employees were given a severance package or a relocation package by June 18. According to the WARN notice, Chipotle plans to begin shutting down the Denver and New York offices on October 5. The close is expected to be finalized by March 1, 2019.
