“I’ll have a corona- hold the virus!”
Yeah, like we’ve never heard that one before.
As a preventative measure, Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged the public in March of 2020 to avoid pubs, clubs, and other social venues to reduce the spread of the coronavirus.
With mass closures of pubs and bars across the UK, several workers in the hospitality industry are unfortunately out of a job due to the pandemic. On the bright side though, at least bar workers across the country won’t have to hear that dumb joke for a while!
With the government’s introduction of the “tier system” and new rulings, pubs and bars across the country were forced to adapt to a new way of working. Strict rules including a 10 pm curfew, table service only, and for some, only being able to serve alcohol with a “substantial meal”. Others unfortunately had to close their doors indefinitely.
Research conducted by three of the biggest trade bodies in the industry (UK Hospitality, British Beer & Pub Association, and British Institute of Innkeeping), who collectively employ over 3 million people, show that 1 in 4 businesses believe they will “go bust by Christmas” due to their financial situation and the government’s strict lockdown measures. Further, over half of those businesses believe they will not survive past mid-2021, with an estimated 675,000 potential job losses.
It is unsurprising that due to the current situation overall sales have dropped by 60% in comparison to the same period in 2019. Even during the re-opening phase at the beginning of July 2020, the sales continued to decrease as customers were still wary about being in confined public spaces.
Dale Irwin, a bartender and team leader working for one of Birmingham’s busiest Wetherspoons pubs, the ‘Square Peg’, says his responsibilities at work have changed enormously since the pandemic hit. “Before the pandemic, I was just a bartender. After we re-opened I was a bartender, a doorman, a waiter, an usher, and a babysitter for customers.”
Despite the majority of customers taking to the new rulings with ease, Mr. Irwin says that some have been making things difficult: “There are some who make things hard for the staff, refusing to follow the rules, refusing to wear a mask and trying to make trouble.”
In terms of sales, there were worries about wastage and stock issues. Mr. Irwin states: “We saw a big hit in our operating sales and profits”. Reportedly the pub was struggling to make roughly 20% of their previous targets, losing approximately 70 casks of ale in the lead-up to the second lockdown.
“There was no-one there to guide us, there was no-one to train us.”
While he agrees with the closures of pubs to help reduce the spread of the virus, Mr. Irwin disagrees with how the Government has been handling the pandemic.
“I don’t think the government has handled the situation very well at all. They could have done a lot more a lot sooner. There is a lot of confusion every time a new tier is announced, and that just goes to show that the government doesn’t have a grasp on what they’re doing.”
One thing is clear- the British public collectively agrees that the Government has handled this pandemic very poorly. Twitter has been a hub of complaints and petitions, begging the Government to reconsider its management of the current situation.
One user tweeted out: “I don’t understand why more people are not outraged at this continuing tragic loss of life due to profound mismanagement of this pandemic by the UK government.”
For those affected financially by the closures of pubs and bars, the furlough scheme has been reintroduced-meaning those who cannot work from home are entitled to 80% of their wages paid by the Government.
“Furlough gives a sense of relief with all the uncertainty going around.”
When asked about returning to work after lockdown Mr. Irwin says he does worry about the re-opening phase.
“My job has been a lot more stressful since all of this has been going on. I’ve been very stressed and anxious about returning to work.”
Before the consideration of re-opening pubs and bars, the Prime Minister urges the general public to stay at home unless absolutely necessary, hoping this lockdown will help to control the spread of the virus.
The Government is currently working on distributing the Pfizer covid vaccine in the UK, prioritizing those in care homes first, and then those aged 80 and older and front-line health and social care staff.
What are YOUR thoughts on how the pandemic has been handled? Are you excited for places to re-open? Let me know in the comments below or find me on Twitter @LaurenEHolsey!
