Now Pret asks staff to slash their hours by a fifth as workers’ slow return to the office hampers its recovery
- Pret a Manger ask staff to slash their working hours by as much as 20 per cent
- Bosses hope that by cutting hours they will able to reduce total job losses
- The chain has seen an 80 per cent drop in business since pre-pandemic levels
Pret a Manger is set to slash the working hours of its staff by around 20 per cent, blaming the move on a reduced footfall.
The sandwich shop has been using Rishi Sunak’s furlough scheme to maintain its workforce during the coronavirus lockdown.
However, despite Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s drive to get people back to work, only a third of office workers in Britain have done so, according to a survey conducted by US investment bank Morgan Stanley in mid-July, the Sunday Times reports.
Sandwich shop giant Pret a Manger will ask its staff to reduce their working hours by around 20 per cent in a bid to save jobs following the coronavirus lockdown
Pret a Manger has been using Rishi Sunak’s furlough scheme to maintain its workforce during the coronavirus lockdown but has seen an 80 per cent drop in business compared to pre-pandemic levels
Pret told the paper: ‘Our priority is to do everything we can to save jobs.’
The company pointed out that the significantly lower footfall their stores have seen has forced them to reconsider working hours for their staff.
Their view is that cutting hours will reduce the number of staff that will have to be let go.
Pret bosses have already warned that 30 of its 410 stores may have to close meaning 1,000 employees would also lose their jobs.
Pret a Manger has seen an 80 per cent drop in business from pre-pandemic levels, with their London Victoria store making only £1,000 in daily sales, compared to £6,000 before the pandemic.
Some 9.6 million jobs had been covered by the coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS) up to August 2, Government figures show – an increase of 100,000 on the previous week
The Office for National Statistics is expected to publish figures next week showing the economy contracted by 20 per cent in the second quarter.
The news comes after government figures showed that the cost of furloughing millions of British workers rose by £2billion in the last week of July.
Some 9.6 million jobs had been covered by the coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS) up to August 2, Government figures show. This was an increase of 100,000 on the previous week.
The cumulative cost of the scheme rose from £31.7billion on July 26 to £33.8billion last Sunday, an increase of £2.1billion.
However, HM Revenue and Customs said it does not currently have data on how many jobs are currently furloughed.
This makes it hard to determine how many people have gone back to work amid Boris Johnson’s call for offices and other workplaces to reopen to stimulate the economy.