Self-employed: ‘We’re being thrown
Greta & her dad in self-isolation Wetherspoon’s founder: I need help to pay wages Millionaire pub boss to staff: Take a supermarket job
Multi-millionaire Tim Martin told workers in a video message to “go work at Tesco”.
Mr Martin has already been criticised for playing down the risk of spreading coronavirus by going to pubs. He has now told his 40,000 workforce that they will be paid for shifts worked until pubs were ordered to shut by Boris Johnson.
But he warned that further pay could be delayed while awaiting the Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, which covers 80% of wages for those unable to work because of the pandemic, begins.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said this could be the end of April.
Mr Martin told staff in his message: “We have had lots of calls from supermarkets – Tesco alone want 20,000 people to join them.
“That’s half the number of people who work in our pubs. If you’re
CLIMATE activist Greta Thunberg has gone into self-isolation with her father after they both started displaying symptoms of Covid-19. The 17-year-old, below, said the pair had recently been on a train tour of Europe together before travel restrictions were imposed. Revealing that she did not feel unwell, the Swede said: “You have to practice social distancing whether you feel ill or not.”
offered a job at a supermarket, many of you will want to do that. If you think it’s a good idea, do it.”
He later said: “Companies like Costa and McDonald’s, being owned by large multinationals, can afford to retain staff and commit to paying them, before details of the Government scheme are published.
“Most companies, including Wetherspoon, do not have the resources to make this commitment and need to see details of the scheme to retain and pay staff.”
The firm said Mr Martin’s comments were “misrepresented”. A spokesman said: “All employees [will] get paid this Friday for work carried out until the pubs shut.
“After that, the company [will] utilise the Government scheme.”
Wetherspoon’s revenues rose 4.9% to £933million in the six months to the end of January this year. Profits rose 15.2% to £57.9m.
Ian Hodson, president of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, said: “Tim Martin’s actions are shocking. He is abandoning workers in their time of need. They need to pay rent, buy food and, because of the low wages he’s paid them, will not have savings to depend upon. He’ll let the workers who have made him rich suffer.”
Labour MP Rachel Reeves branded the move “unacceptable.”
Elsewhere, Sports Direct staff claimed the firm is making them come into stores to be eligible to be
THE Government is facing mounting anger for dithering over help for the self-employed. Despite a package of measures to back businesses and the employed, it has so far failed to respond to pressure to provide financial aid for
DELAY Rishi Sunak
Sport store and Mike Ashley
paid, despite its shops being closed. The retailer, controlled by billionaire Mike Ashley, did a major U-turn after claiming it was exempt from the Government lockdown.
One worker, whose partner also works at Sports Direct, said: “I cuddled a scared and confused fiveyear-old last night, knowing that those who work for themselves. Joanna Elson OBE, the chief executive of Money Advice Trust, said workers are seeing “businesses hit harder and more quickly than they could have imagined”.
She called on the Government to introduce a dedicated hardship fund. Matt Dowling, CEO of the his mum and dad could risk potentially bringing in the virus for the sake of some fitness equipment.”
Factory worker Leonnie Foster, from Worksop, Notts, said: “We are expected to go into work and, due to the nature of the job, it is unrealistic to stand two metres away from people.”
Freelancer Club, said the Chancellor had thrown his 40,000 members “under the bus”, adding: “They’re effectively condemning people to bankruptcy, or worse.”
Last week Chancellor Rishi Sunak promised to cover 80% of workers’ salaries so they could stay on the books while companies weathered