JD Wetherspoon to cut 450 jobs at airport pubs
JD Wetherspoon today said it will cut roughly 450 jobs from six of its airport pubs due to the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The job cuts will impact staff at the chain’s pubs at Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Glasgow airports.
In a letter to staff, seen by PA, the budget boozer warned that between 400 and 450 positions were at risk of redundancy.
The announcement comes hours after the government announced all pubs and restaurants will be forced to close at 10pm from Thursday.
Last month Wetherspoons said it would cut up to 130 jobs in a bid to cut costs after the chain was forced to shutter sites due to the coronavirus lockdown in March.
Chief executive Tim Martin has hit out at the government’s coronavirus response and warned that pubs and other hospitality businesses must not be closed in a second lockdown.
Earlier this month the outspoken beer boss insisted his pubs were safe, despite revealing that 66 employees had tested positive for Covid-19 since venues reopened in July.
In the letter Wetherspoons said it would start a consultation period with affected staff. It hopes many of the cuts will come from voluntary redundancies.
The latest cuts came after Premier Inn owner Whitbread announced plans to cut up to 6,000 jobs, equivalent to almost a fifth of its total workforce.