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HIGH STREET HELL

Companies including Burger King, Pizza Hut and H&M announce store closures putting 30,000 jobs at risk

SEVERAL businesses have announced closures putting tens of thousands of jobs at risk.

The latest companies to warn of redundancies include Burger King, Pizza Hut, Costa and Cineworld.

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Costa Coffee has warned that 1,650 jobs are at risk
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Costa Coffee has warned that 1,650 jobs are at riskCredit: Alamy Live News

The retail and entertainment industries have been under significant pressure throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Ongoing lockdowns and restrictions have reduced footfall and left many businesses struggling to keep their doors open.

Burger King has drafted in advisers to look at restructuring the business
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Burger King has drafted in advisers to look at restructuring the businessCredit: Alamy Live News

Just this week, fast food chain Burger King drafted in advisers from AlixPartners to look at restructuring the business.

This could mean the closure of 10 restaurants, Sky News revealed, with up to 1,600 jobs thought to be at risk.

Pizza Hut also confirmed that 29 of its restaurants are earmarked for closure, which puts 450 people at risk of redundancy.

Which companies are warning of redundancies?

HERE'S all the brands that have warned of job losses since the beginning of September

  • Burger King: the fast food giant is restructuring - which could cost up to 1,600 jobs
  • Pizza Hut: confirmed job losses up up to 450 jobs after a plan to close 29 restaurants was approved by landlords
  • H&M:-announced plans to shut 250 stores globally next year.
  • TSB - 164 branches are at risk of closure - with 848 employees at risk
  • Fuller's: Fuller's said more than 500 jobs could be lost as a result of the pandemic.
  • Greggs: Workers to take hour cuts but bosses have warned job losses may follow
  • Pizza Express: Confirmed 73 restaurants to close putting 1,100 jobs at risk
  • Premier Inn: Owner Whitbread to cut 6,000 jobs due to coronavirus
  • Wetherspoons: To cut up to 450 jobs from six pubs in airports
  • Costa Coffee: announced plans to cut 1,650 jobs
  • Cineworld: 5,500 jobs thought to be at risk as all UK and Ireland cinemas are set to shut temporarily
  • City London Airport: Cutting 239 jobs in ‘crucial restructuring plan’
  • Pret A Manger: 2,800 jobs at risk as 30 stores are earmarked for closure
  • Marks and Spencer: confirmed plans to axe up to 7,000 workers over the next three months
  • Virgin Atlantic: cuts another 1,150 jobs despite £1.2billion rescue plan approval.

Meanwhile, Cineworld is planning to close it's doors until next year, with 5,500 staff facing losing their jobs.

In total, there have been almost 30,000 potential redundancies announced across UK businesses since the beginning of September.

This is on top of the hundreds of thousands of redundancies that were announced during the UK's lockdown.

Pizza Hut has confirmed that 29 of its restaurants are earmarked for closure
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Pizza Hut has confirmed that 29 of its restaurants are earmarked for closureCredit: Alamy

Research by the Institute for Employment Studies showed that between May and July this year, bosses told the government that 380,000 workers were at risk of losing their jobs.

This is more than double the peak reached in the Great Recession, when 180,000 staff were notified as being at risk between January and March 2009.

What are my redundancy rights?

BEFORE making you unemployed, your employer should still carry out a fair redundancy process.

You are entitled to be consulted on the redundancy lay-off first and to receive a statutory redundancy payment, as long as you've been working somewhere for at least two years.

How much you're entitled to depends on your age and length of service, although this is capped at 20 years. You'll get:

  • Half a week’s pay for each full year you were under 22,
  • One week’s pay for each full year you were 22 or older, but under 41,
  • One and half week’s pay for each full year you were 41 or older.

Sadly, you won't be entitled to a payout if you've been working for your employer for fewer than two years.

There should be a period of collective consultation as well as time for individual ones if your employer wants to make 20 or more employees redundant within 90 days or each other.

You are also entitled to appeal the decision by claiming unfair dismissal within three months of being let go.

Unfortunately, these losses are only likely to increase as Rishi Sunak's furlough scheme comes to a close at the end of this month.

The CBI found that half of businesses plan on cutting jobs or freezing hiring altogether over the next year because of the coronavirus crisis.

A new scheme to help retain jobs has been announced, but UK bosses have warned that it doesn't go far enough to save people from unemployment.

Other household names that have warned of incoming redundancies include Costa, H&M, Greggs and Wetherspoon.

What is Rishi Sunak’s Job Support Scheme, who is eligible and how do I apply?

  • To be eligible, employees must be working at least a third of their contracted hours and be paid for those hours in full by their employer.
  • For the two thirds of the other hours not worked, the government will pay a third - so 22% of the employee's overall wages.
  • The employer will have to pay the other third of it. It means with the third they are already paying, they will have to fork out 55% of the total wages.
  • The scheme will start on November 1 - the day after the original furlough scheme ends.
  • It's open to all small and medium sized businesses, even if they didn't use the furlough scheme beforehand.
  • The Jobs Support Scheme will only help those on the PAYE pay roll. Self-employed workers have been given more time to pay their tax bill and extra grant help.
  • It's likely employees won't have to apply - and employers will do the work for them.
  • Employers were previously able to claim back wages from the HMRC portal.
Upper Crust owners plan to make 5,000 UK staff redundant in wake of coronavirus pandemic

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