Scottish hospitality businesses and workers to mount 'save our jobs' campaign

A campaign to save thousands of jobs in Scottish hotels, bars, cafes and restaurants is to be launched within days as businesses battle to survive in the face of ongoing coronavirus curbs.
The Piper Bar in Glasgow is among the hundreds of pubs in Glasgow which have been forced to close during the ongoing coronavirus restrictions. Picture: John DevlinThe Piper Bar in Glasgow is among the hundreds of pubs in Glasgow which have been forced to close during the ongoing coronavirus restrictions. Picture: John Devlin
The Piper Bar in Glasgow is among the hundreds of pubs in Glasgow which have been forced to close during the ongoing coronavirus restrictions. Picture: John Devlin

Industry bodies are expected to join forces for a drive to raise awareness of the scale of the crisis facing the industry, amid warnings of mass redundancies unless the furlough scheme is extended or restrictions start to be relaxed in Scotland again.

Workers will be encouraged to post selfies holding "Save Our Jobs” signs aloft to coincide with the start of the campaign, which is aimed at highlighting how many people are affected by the current restrictions, which will be kept in place until.

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It is also hoped that video messages from staff whose jobs are hanging in the balance will help the campaign go viral on social media, with leading hotels, chefs and bar owners asked to get involved.

Edinburgh's normally-thriving tourism industry has been slow to recover from the coronavirus pandemic this year due to the restrictions on hospitality and events. Picture: VisitScotland/Kenny LamEdinburgh's normally-thriving tourism industry has been slow to recover from the coronavirus pandemic this year due to the restrictions on hospitality and events. Picture: VisitScotland/Kenny Lam
Edinburgh's normally-thriving tourism industry has been slow to recover from the coronavirus pandemic this year due to the restrictions on hospitality and events. Picture: VisitScotland/Kenny Lam

One leading hotelier said: “The aims are to raise awareness of the scale of the hospitality industry, how many people are directly and indirectly involved with it and how the current restrictions are affecting the security of thousands of jobs.”

Roddy Smith, chief executive of Essential Edinburgh, which represents hotels, bars and restaurants in the city centre, said: “The new restrictions are obviously having a major impact especially after a period of time when the hospitality businesses had worked so hard in putting in place extensive measures that allowed them to operate.”

News of the campaign emerged as tourism and hospitality industry leaders revealed the widespread impact of the latest restrictions, which came into force on 9 October.

The survey of 350 businesses across the country discovered that 1149 had since been made redundant as a direct result of the new restrictions.

Pubs in the Highlands, such as the Clachaig Inn, in Glencoe, are not allowed to sell alcohol indoors during the ongoing restrictions. Picture: VisitScotland / David N AndersonPubs in the Highlands, such as the Clachaig Inn, in Glencoe, are not allowed to sell alcohol indoors during the ongoing restrictions. Picture: VisitScotland / David N Anderson
Pubs in the Highlands, such as the Clachaig Inn, in Glencoe, are not allowed to sell alcohol indoors during the ongoing restrictions. Picture: VisitScotland / David N Anderson

Nearly half of all businesses surveyed said they had been forced to fully or partially shut down. One in 10 accommodation businesses said they had already lost more than £50,000 due to cancellations of bookings.

Marc Crothall, chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance, said: “The results clearly demonstrate that the

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restrictions continue to have a significant impact on businesses across the sector.

"The findings further highlight the urgent need for a substantial level of financial support to be made available to help businesses’ both survive and to mitigate further job losses.”

The temporary restrictions announced earlier this month forced licensed premises in the central belt to close their doors, although some cafes were allowed to stay open.

Elsewhere in Scotland, bars and restaurants are only allowed between 6am and 6pm, but are banned from selling alcohol.

All hotels are banned from serving alcohol to guests, other than in their rooms or in outdoor spaces.

Before the pandemic, tourism and hospitality were said to support more than 218,000 jobs and account for more than eight per cent of all jobs in Scotland.

The head of the Scottish Government's own tourism agency was warning of the prospect of "widespread" mass redundancies across the industry even before the latest restrictions, due to run until until 26 Monday, were unveiled.

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VisitScotland chief executive Malcolm Roughead said it was clear that the entire Scottish tourism industry was “struggling” to cope with the tightening of restrictions, with many businesses forced to grapple with “a question of survival.”

The Scottish Licensed Trade Association has estimated that up to two-thirds of pubs will have to close permanently in the next few months if restrictions are kept in place.

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