THE CORONA CULL: 12, 000 JOBS LOST IN JUST 2 DAYS
...as PM begs firms to hold off on staff cuts and wait for economy to bounce back
THE Prime Minister begged bosses to hold off on cutting jobs yesterday after 12,000 staff were axed in just two days.
Boris Johnson said firms should use the furlough scheme and wait until the economy improved before deciding whether to lay employees off.
After a string of firms announced job losses on Tuesday, the misery continued yesterday with John Lewis warning of cuts.
The retail giant warned staff it was ‘highly unlikely’ all of its department stores would reopen, as it announced the closure of one of its central London offices to cut costs. The much-coveted staff bonus will also be cut to zero for the first time since 1953.
Upper Crust also axed 5,000 jobs yesterday, saying sales of its baguettes in train stations and airports had collapsed amid falling passenger numbers.
Management consulting firm Accenture announced 900 job losses, and Topshop’s owner Arcadia reduced the number of staff in its head office by 500, citing ‘very challenging times’. Elsewhere in retail, Harrods, furniture seller Harveys and TM Lewin cut more than 1,500 jobs between them.
Ryanair pilots and cabin crew, who were forced to agree pay cuts of up to 20 per cent yesterday, were still waiting for a final decision on 3,500 job cuts. Virgin Money said it would make 300 redundancies and close or merge 52 branches.
On Tuesday, 3,700 redundancies came at Airbus UK and EasyJet, including 700 pilots.
Experts believe unemployment could hit 10 per cent even as taxpayers pay the wages of 11million workers. They fear redundancies are picking up speed as the Government’s prepares to pare back the furlough scheme from August 1.
It follows a 20 per cent contraction in the economy because of the lockdown, making it the worst month on record. This week Mr Johnson laid out a route map out of recession focused around large infrastructure projects, investment in the NHS and schools, and cutting planning red tape.
But yesterday he warned workers were still at a ‘very, very serious’ risk of losing their jobs. He said: ‘I say to employers to keep supporting your workers with the furloughing scheme, it’s much better to wait for times to get better rather than laying people off.’ Defending his plans for the economy, he added: ‘We’re going to build, build, build and deliver jobs, jobs, jobs for the people of this country.’
In response, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: ‘Next week’s financial statement could be the last chance to save millions of jobs. Will the Prime Minister start now
‘We’ll deliver jobs, jobs, jobs
by extending the furlough scheme for those parts of the economy which are still most at risk?’
Earlier this month official data from the Office of National Statistics said there were 600,000 fewer people on the payroll in May than in March. And the number of people claiming work-related benefits – which includes the unemployed – was up 126 per cent to 2.8 million.
Money expert Martin Lewis said: ‘Due to the change in furlough coming on August 1, I think hundreds of thousands of people – possibly a million – could face redundancy in the next six weeks.’
From August 1, companies will be asked to pay national insurance and pension contributions for the hours an employee is on furlough ahead of further increases in September. There are particular fears for jobs in
the travel, retail and leisure industries where demand is not expected to recover for many months.
Many pubs, bars and restaurants have said they will struggle to make a profit when they start to open in England this Saturday, even with one-metre distancing.
There were also fresh worries for the creative sector yesterday as Norwich Theatre Royal called off its Christmas pantomime and laid off 113 people – half its staff.
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