As Charles Dickens almost said: “a national crisis shows the best of people, the worst of people.”
During the coronavirus crisis, union-news.co.uk has been reporting on how employees have treated their workers. Some have been very good. Others have been very bad.
We thought we should keep a record of who did what, so when this is all over you can choose where to spend your money.
The list isn’t exhaustive, so feel free to submit your stories to news@union-news.co.uk.
Stay safe!
Those who did
Amey – after intensive lobbying agreed to pay staff in full
ASDA – gave staff an extra week’s wages
Co-Op – rewarded staff
Faurecia – agreed furlough deal with Unite
Kellogg’s – guaranteed staff wages for twelve weeks
Kuehne + Nagel – agreed furlough deal with Unite
Matalan – paid workers furlough leave
A selection of museums and galleries – agreed to furlough staff on 100%
next – closed its warehouses and distribution centres to protect workers
Numatic – switched from making vacuum cleaners to making face shields and sent all non-essential staff home
Ocado – paid 10% bonus to frontline employees
Rolls Royce – agreed furlough deal with Unite
Tesco – paid 10% bonus to hourly-paid staff
Transport for Greater Manchester – furloughed staff on 100%
Well Pharmacy – gave staff a 10% pay rise
Those who didn’t
AFC Bournemouth – furloughed staff rather than pay themselves, burdening the UK government
Amazon – kept warehouses open
ASOS – playing “Russian roulette” in crowded warehouses, ASOS kept people working while other firms closed and ASOS tried to change working conditions during the crisis
Biffa Waste Services – failed to address workers’ safety concerns
British Airways – agreed furlough deal with Unite … which it later broke … and later announced plans to sack all 40,000 staff.
Carluccio’s – accused of wage theft
DHL – “endangered thousands” with ‘inadequate’ coronavirus social distancing and safety measures and forced self-isolating workers to survive on SSP
easyJet – announced plans to sack 30% of staff
Ford – refused to top up cleaners’ furlough wages
Gateway – sacked workers by text
Greencore – failed to tell workers a manager had tested positive for coronavirus
ISS – failed to pay cleaning, portering and catering staff at Lewisham Hospital
King’s College, London – sacked a member of staff who failed to turn up to a disciplinary during lockdown
London Early Years Foundation – demanded workers accepted reduced hours and holidays; sick pay slashed to minimum by 1 April – or face the sack.
Lidl – failed to give workers full pay
Mainline Menswear – kept warehouse open
Net-A-Porter – kept warehouses open
Newcastle United FC – furloughed staff rather than pay them themselves, burdening the UK government
Norwich City FC – furloughed staff rather than pay themselves, burdening the UK government
P & O Ferries – slashed pay and conditions under cover of coronavirus crisis
Rolls Royce – announced plans to cut 9,000 jobs
Smulders steel – workers put at risk in “sardine” factory
Sports Direct – kept warehouses open
Stena – suspended sick pay for workers
Tottenham Hotspur FC – furloughed staff rather than pay them themselves, burdening the UK government
Wetherspoons – stopped paying its 40,000 workers. Eventually, public pressure got them to change their mind, but …
Wren Kitchens – fired workers before furlough rules kicked in
Yodel – under fire for lack of PPE
