WORKERS at Index stores in York and Scarborough were today celebrating the news that their jobs are safe.

About 40 employees have been told that their branches of the stricken catalogue business, at Piccadilly in York, and at Brunswick Pavilion in Scarborough, are among only 33 that will be sold by the chain's owner Littlewoods to its rival Argos in a £44 million deal. Another 126 Index outlets will be closed.

The York and Scarborough outlets will continue trading as Index stores for the next 90 days, when Argos takes them over, along with all the jobs.

By then, there will be as many as four Argos catalogue stores in the York area - the others will be the present stores in Bridge Street and at Clifton Moor shopping centre, and at Monks Cross, Huntington, where a new Argos opens next month.

But an Argos spokeswoman said: "We have no intention of closing Argos stores in York or anywhere else."

That includes Scarborough, where there is already one Argos outlet.

The acquisition of the York and Scarborough Index stores, along with 31 others nationally, will bring the number of Argos outlets in the UK to 625.

Littlewoods, owned by the Barclay brothers, is said to have run out of patience with its Index chain, which had racked up losses in almost every year of its 20-year history, amounting to more than £100 million in total.

Meanwhile, retail union Usdaw will be meeting senior management from Index this week, demanding to see the company's business case for closing or selling every store within the group and to find out what other options Index management considered before this decision was taken.

By the time the doors of unsold Index shops are closed nearly 4,000 jobs will be lost.

Usdaw National Officer John Gorle said his priority was finding alternative employment within the Littlewoods group for his members to retain as many jobs as possible.

"This decision has come completely out of the blue," said Mr Gorle.

"Our members who have contributed to the success of this company have been left reeling and utterly shocked by this devastating news.

"Staff at the 131 stores where there is no buyer, head office workers based in Liverpool and distribution staff at Wednesbury in the West Midlands now face a very uncertain future,which is terrible news for them and their families."

Updated: 08:39 Wednesday, April 20, 2005