Premier Inn owner Whitbread warns it could axe 6,000 staff as Covid crisis continues to hit hotel trade
Job cuts threatened at Premier Inn, which has around 800 hotels across the UK
Whitbread also owns Brewers Fayre, Beefeater and Table Table restaurants
Britain’s jobs bloodbath continues as thousands of people are made redundant
By Luke May For Mailonline
Published: | Updated:
Premier Inn owner Whitbread has warned it could axe up to 6,000 jobs as the coronavirus crisis continues to hit demand for hotel stays.
The hospitality company also owns Brewers Fayre, Beefeater and Table Table restaurants, while operating around 800 Premier Inns across the country.
Thousands of jobs have been lost across Britain as the financial impact of Covid-19 continues to hit the economy.
Whitbread, which owns Premier Inn along with several restaurant chains, has announced up to 6,000 jobs cuts
Data released this month shows more than 300,000 jobs were put at risk of redundancy in June and July – nearly seven times higher than last year’s levels.
Restaurant and hotel chains have been hit hard during the pandemic, after many were forced to close during the first months of the coronavirus lockdown.
Costa Coffee, which was sold by Whitbread last year, has said 1,650 staff are at risk of redundancy as it looks to cut costs.
Coffee and sandwich chain Pret a Manger confirmed it has axed 2,800 roles from its shops, while Pizza Express plans to permanently shut 73 of its restaurants, putting 1,100 jobs at risk.
On September 9, Lloyds Bank announced it was cutting 865 jobs, just days after the Cooperative Bank revealed it was to axe around 350 jobs from up and down the country and close 18 branches.
Last month Natwest Group announced it too was cutting 550 jobs in branches across the UK and closing one of its remaining offices in London.
How more than 190,000 jobs have now been lost or are at risk amid the coronavirus pandemic
Here is a list of some of the major British employers that have announced major job cuts since the start of the lockdown.
Major potential job losses announced since March 23: 194,997
September 18 – Investec – 210
September 18 – Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways – 90
September 15 – Waitrose – 124
September 14 – London City Airport – 239
September 9 – Pizza Hut – 450 at risk
September 9 – Lloyds Bank – 865
September 3 – Virgin Atlantic – 1,150
September 3 – Costa – 1,650
September 2 – Heathrow – 1,200
August 27 – Pret a Manger – 2,800
August 25 – Co-operative bank – 350
August 20 – Alexander Dennis – 650
August 18 – Bombardier – 95
August 18 – M&S – 7,000
August 17 – easyJet – 670
August 17 – Jet2 – 102
August 16 – Debenhams – 14,000 at risk
August 14 – John Lewis – 399 at risk
August 14 – Yo! Sushi – 250
August 14 – River Island – 350
August 12 – NatWest – 550
August 11 – InterContinental Hotels – 650 worldwide
August 11 – Debenhams – 2,500
August 7 – Evening Standard – 115
August 6 – Travelex – 1,300
August 6 – Wetherspoons – 110 to 130
August 5 – M&Co – 380
August 5 – Arsenal FC – 55
August 5 – WH Smith – 1,500
August 4 – Dixons Carphone – 800
August 4 – Pizza Express – 1,100 at risk
August 3 – Hays Travel – up to 878
August 3 – DW Sports – 1,700 at risk
July 31 – Byron – 651
July 30 – Pendragon – 1,800
July 29 – Waterstones – unknown number of head office roles
July 28 – Selfridges – 450
July 27 – Oak Furnitureland – 163 at risk
July 23 – Dyson – 600 in UK, 300 overseas
July 22 – Mears – fewer than 200
July 20 – Marks & Spencer – 950 at risk
July 17 – Azzurri Group (owns Zizzi and Ask Italian) – up to 1,200
July 16 – Genting – 1,642 at risk
July 16 – Burberry – 150 in UK, 350 overseas
July 15 – Banks Mining – 250 at risk
July 15 – Buzz Bingo – 573 at risk
July 14 – Vertu – 345
July 14 – DFS – up to 200 at risk
July 9 – General Electric – 369
July 9 – Eurostar – unknown number
July 9 – Boots – 4,000
July 9 – John Lewis – 1,300 at risk
July 9 – Burger King – 1,600 at risk
July 7 – Reach (owns Daily Mirror and Daily Express newspapers) – 550
July 2 – Casual Dining Group (owns Bella Italia and Cafe Rouge) – 1,909
July 1 – SSP (owns Upper Crust) – 5,000 at risk
July 1 – Arcadia (owns TopShop) – 500
July 1 – Harrods – 700
July 1 – Virgin Money – 300
June 30 – Airbus – 1,700
June 30 – TM Lewin – 600
June 30 – Smiths Group – ‘some job losses’
June 25 – Royal Mail – 2,000
June 24 – Jet2 – 102
June 24 – Swissport – 4,556
June 24 – Crest Nicholson – 130
June 23 – Shoe Zone – unknown number of jobs in head office
June 19 – Aer Lingus – 500
June 17 – HSBC – unknown number of jobs in UK, 35,000 worldwide
June 15 – Jaguar Land Rover – 1,100
June 15 – Travis Perkins – 2,500
June 12 – Le Pain Quotidien – 200
June 11 – Bombardier – 600
June 11 – Johnson Matthey – 2,500
June 11 – Centrica – 5,000
June 10 – Quiz – 93
June 10 – The Restaurant Group (owns Frankie and Benny’s) – 3,000
June 10 – Monsoon Accessorise – 545
June 10 – Everest Windows – 188
June 8 – BP – 10,000 worldwide
June 8 – Mulberry – 375
June 5 – Victoria’s Secret – 800 at risk
June 5 – Bentley – 1,000
June 4 – Aston Martin – 500
June 4 – Lookers – 1,500
May 29 – Belfast International Airport – 45
May 28 – Debenhams (in second announcement) – ‘hundreds’ of jobs
May 28 – EasyJet – 4,500 worldwide
May 26 – McLaren – 1,200
May 22 – Carluccio’s – 1,000
May 21 – Clarks – 900
May 20 – Rolls-Royce – 9,000
May 20 – Bovis Homes – unknown number
May 19 – Ovo Energy – 2,600
May 19 – Antler – 164
May 15 – JCB – 950 at risk
May 13 – Tui – 8,000 worldwide
May 12 – Carnival UK (owns P&O Cruises and Cunard) – 450
