Labour Planning Manager

Greggs; Newcastle upon Tyne; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Management Bonus Scheme (up to 12.5%)

Pension scheme with matching employer

Colleague discount, up to 50%

Profit share - 10% of profits

25 days annual leave + floating day

Colleague share plans (discounted Greg

Private Medical Insurance

Income Protection

Death in service 4x salary

Wellbeing app access

Employee Assistance Programme

Savings and discounts

Job summary

Greggs in Newcastle upon Tyne is seeking a Labour Planning Manager on a 9-month fixed term contract. You will own the WFM configuration, forecasting accuracy, and labour model design to support store operations.

You'll lead seasonal planning, work with IT and third-party partners, and ensure compliance with UK working time regulations while delivering robust schedules and cost guidance. This role offers strong benefits and career development within a market-leading retail business.

Qualifications

• Experience with WFM systems such as UKG Pro WFM, Dimensions or Kronos.
• Understanding forecasting techniques, labour measurement and models.
• Knowledge of timekeeping, pay rules, scheduling and UK working time rules.
• Strong Excel skills and numerical analysis.
• Experience testing system changes and managing change control.
• Excellent communication with stakeholders at all levels.
• Ability to work independently during coverage periods.

Responsibilities

• Take overall accountability for WFM system configuration and forecasting.
• Maintain pay codes, scheduling rules, and labour cost drivers.
• Ensure governance via change control and secure system access.
• Collaborate with IT and third-party partners to test functionality.
• Produce accurate forecasts and schedules aligned to shop types.
• Lead seasonal planning and Christmas/New Year forecasts.
• Support training and adoption of new functionality.

Skills

WFM systems

Forecasting techniques

Timekeeping rules

Excel skills

Change management

Communication skills

Independent work

Tools

UKG Pro WFM

Dimensions

Kronos

Power BI

SQL

Boomi

Job description

The following content displays a map of the jobs location - Newcastle upon Tyne

Monday to Friday, however some flexibility may be required depending on business needs

Contract Hours:

Full time

Location:

Newcastle upon Tyne

Closing Date:

16/11/2026

Job Category:

Head Office

Region / Site:

Head Office

Business Unit:

Retail

Vacancy Information

We have a fantastic opportunity to join the Workload Planning team at Greggs as a Labour Planning Manager on a 9-month fixed term contract.

We can offer you:

Management Bonus Scheme which is worth up to 12.5% of your salary

Pension scheme with matching employer contributions up to 7%

Colleague discount, up to 50% off our own-produced products

Profit share - We want everyone to share in the success of the business, so we distribute 10% of our profits to all our colleagues who have at least 6-month service, or more, each year

25 days (5 weeks) annual leave, pro-rated, increasing with service (in addition to bank holidays), plus 1 additional floating day

The opportunity to purchase additional annual leave twice a year

Colleague share plans, giving you the opportunity to save and invest in Greggs, with the chance to buy Greggs shares at a discounted rate

Private Medical Insurance which is free for you and subsidised for your dependants

Income Protection should you become unable to work due to long-term sickness

Death in service benefit which provides a lump-sum payment equal to 4 times your year's salary

Virtual GP, Physiotherapy and Lifestyle Consultations - we provide access to a fantastic total wellbeing app for you and your family

Employee Assistance Programme - we provide all colleagues with access to an EAP helpline providing mental health support as well as financial and legal support

Savings and discounts, including digital gift card discounts, online cashback, in-store and online coupons and lifestyle offers

Career progression and learning and development opportunities

A company who cares about our communities; the environment and being a better business! Click here to read about The Greggs Pledge

Colleague Networks - internal groups where colleagues and their allies can share their own experiences, offer feedback on the way we do things at Greggs, and provide support to one another

About the role

• This is a full-time role, however flexibility in this will be considered
• We know that having a work-life balance is important, so we offer our colleagues as much flexibility as possible in line with the needs of their role
• The base location for this role is Greggs House, Quorum Park, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE12 8BU

What you'll do

System ownership & configuration

• Take overall accountability for the configuration of the WFM system, including forecasting, the labour model and scheduling rules
• Maintain core configuration – pay codes, punch rules, scheduling rule sets, volume drivers, retail hierarchy, bank holidays and scheduled batch jobs
• Apply robust change control: configuration changes are documented, tested and approved before going live
• Manage system access, roles and permissions in line with governance
• Work alongside IT to ensure that critical interfaces (POS, SuccessFactors, SAP Payroll, BI and the LaborPro labour standards feed) are defined, tested and working; review daily exceptions and resolve or escape failures
• Ensure that the WFM system is utilised effectively to produce accurate sales and labour forecasts aligned to shop types, sales channels and day-parts
• Utilise the WFM system to provide labour schedules (rotas) for our shop teams which meet labour demand, availability and comply with all working time regulations, including preparation for the Employment Rights Act (ERA)
• Work with the Finance team to ensure that system forecasts and labour costs are aligned with finance views and budgets, and that any differences and risks are clearly articulated
• Model the impact operational changes will have on labour costs and the wage ratio
• Work closely with the Labour Standards Manager to ensure labour standards are up to date, reviews are prioritised and LaborPro outputs flow correctly into UKG
• Lead seasonal planning, including Christmas and New Year forecasts and plans

Support & third-party management

• Act as the escalation point for complex system queries that cannot be resolved by Shop Support (via Hornbill) or shift leads in shops
• Monitor support trends and take proactive steps to fix root causes
• Work alongside third-party support partners (e.g. Axsium, Simms & Associates, UKG Support, Connors) to resolve issues and to develop and test new functionality
• Keep process documentation and handover notes up to date to reduce reliance on any single person
• Support delivery of colleague self-service functionality in the UKG app (time off, availability, shift swaps / open shifts) and adoption targets
• Lead testing of new functionality and UKG releases, including test plans and impact on end users
• Work alongside the training team so that changes to functionality are effectively trained out to shop teams
• Work alongside retail teams to drive engagement and work collaboratively to overcome resistance or challenges; spending time in shops to improve both the end-user and customer experience
• Understand operational challenges and propose effective solutions so that system outputs are credible
• Support all central retail initiatives, ensuring effective labour planning underpins retail operations

About you

You'll fit right into this role if you have...

• Experience of working with WFM systems – UKG Pro WFM / Dimensions / Workforce Central (or Kronos)
• Understanding of forecasting techniques, labour measurement and labour models
• Understanding of timekeeping, pay rules, scheduling and UK working time regulations
• Mathematical and analytical, with strong Excel skills
• Experience of testing system changes and managing change control
• Excellent communication skills at all levels, able to explain technical issues to non-technical colleagues and engage key stakeholders
• Able to step in quickly, prioritise and work independently during a period of cover

We'd also like to know if you have...

• Experience of labour standards software (e.g. Connors LaborPro)
• Knowledge of system integrations, data feeds and reporting tools (e.g. Power BI, SQL, Boomi)
• Experience of managing third-party suppliers or consultants
• Multi-site retail or food-to-go experience

About Greggs

Here at Greggs, we love what we do, and we have fun! What makes us so special is our culture - how we behave and support each other. Everyone's welcome at Greggs. Whatever their background, preferences or beliefs we want all of our colleagues to feel welcome and able to be themselves at work. You can read more about us here: Greggs Careers | About Greggs.