Greggs has announced it will close all of its more than 2,050 shops from Tuesday night to help maintain social distancing during the coronavirus outbreak. The bakery chain, which employs around 25,000 people, had already switched to takeaway-only service but said it needed to go further to protect staff and customers.
The move follows similar decisions by McDonald's, Nando's, KFC, Costa Coffee, Subway and Pizza Express. Prime Minister Boris Johnson had ordered restaurants and cafes to close but exempted takeaway outlets. However, many chains have opted for full closures due to difficulties in maintaining safe distancing.
Greggs said it intends to keep employees on full contract hours for as long as possible, with support from the government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. McDonald's will close all 1,270 UK restaurants by Monday evening, affecting 135,000 workers, who will receive full pay until 5 April.
Costa Coffee is shutting 2,000 branches but keeping hospital outlets open and offering free hot drinks to NHS workers for two weeks. Its 19,000 staff will be paid in full for the next eight weeks. Subway closed all UK stores from 5pm Monday, with some franchisees donating food to frontline workers.
The hospitality industry has been severely impacted by the outbreak. Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the government will pay 80% of wages for furloughed employees up to £2,500 a month, but self-employed and gig economy workers are not covered unless paid via PAYE.
