s Coles and Aldi, to which it has lost market share. Woolworths said its efforts to turnaround its flagging performance and cut costs would see around 1,200 jobs go, up from the 400 job losses announced in May. The supermarket chain also warned its full year profit would be around $300 million lower than a year ago due to weak sales growth and $270 million in transformation costs. It now expects to post a full year profit of $2.15 billion, down from $2.45 billion last year. O’Brien said the company was on track to beat its target of $500 million in savings and said the supermarket’s prices were now the most competitive they have been in more than a year. But he said it would take time for the three-year strategy to yield results. Shareholders are aggrieved at his parting package, especially taking into account the eroding of shareholder value, which has only increased by a mere 1,6 per cent, and the unsuccessful investment in the Masters Hardware chain, during O’Brien’s time at the helm. They plan to address their grievances at the annual general meeting this month. Taking into account O’Brien’s overall poor performance, they are of the opinion he should not be permitted to extend his employment to retirement age and receive the commensurate benefits that are substantially more than if he left within months of his resignation.