1 in 3 Scots furloughed with jobs ‘in crisis’
MORE than one in three workers have been furloughed in parts of Scotland, say researchers.
There are fears of looming widespread unemployment after the figures laid bare how many jobs are on ‘life support’.
The Highlands is Scotland’s furlough hotspot, with 34 per cent of workers being paid by the state, followed by Perth and Kinross, on 33 per cent, according to an analysis of official figures by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).
Both local authority areas have a large number of employees in tourism and hospitality, a sector hit hard by the coronavirus crisis.
Yesterday, the Scottish Government announced a £14million fund to try to secure 3,000 hotel jobs.
But industry leaders said it would not be enough to prevent closures and redundancies.
The FSB study also indicates above-average proportions of workers on furlough in Glasgow, South Ayrshire, Stirling, East Ayrshire, Moray, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire and South Lanarkshire.
Across Scotland, 736,500 people have been furloughed – about 30 per cent of the workers eligible for the Chancellor’s scheme.
The FSB said the figures show that ‘almost every community across Scotland will face employment challenges if the economy doesn’t get moving and employers aren’t able to bring staff back’ from furlough.
FSB Scotland policy chairman Andrew McRae said: ‘While these lifeline schemes are imperfect – and we still look for policymakers to close gaps where they exist – they undoubtedly saved many firms and jobs during the difficult months of spring and summer 2020.
‘But there is a long way to go and we are seeing a jobs crisis unfold before our eyes.
Under the Scottish Government’s £14million ‘hotel recovery programme’, eligible firms will be able to apply for £250,000 in grants.
Finance Secretary Kate Forbes said: ‘Its core purpose will be to protect larger hotels, which have been badly affected by the events of the recent months.’
A further £1million will be handed out by VisitScotland to self-catering businesses ineligible for other types of Scottish Government support. The grants will be in oneoff £10,000 payments to help firms get through the winter season.
Scottish Tourism Alliance chief executive Marc Crothall said the funding was ‘extremely welcome’ and would help save many jobs.
But he said: ‘It remains the case that without this support and other forms of longer-term support and relief in the future, many of Scotland’s hotels will remain at significant risk of being forced into permanent closure, which will result in many more thousands of jobs still being lost.’
‘Hotels remain at significant risk’