Dozens of bar and club security staff in Dundee have been reassured that their jobs are safe and they will be given financial support during the lockdown.
Bar security staff were among the first to be forced to stop working when the government told pubs and clubs they had to shut their doors.
One employee of Glasgow-based Securigroup, which employs around 60 people in Dundee, welcomed the news after an extremely worrying few weeks.
He said: “We haven’t worked for two weeks now. We are on zero hours contracts and paid on a weekly basis.
“We haven’t been paid for around 11 days and guys were beginning to get really worried about how they were going to afford to pay the bills and feed their families.”
He added: “However the company has now told us that we should be paid within the week and that we are to be furloughed.
“This is welcome news and I just hope that the money will be coming soon. For many of the guys this is their only source of income and the money is desperately needed.”
Allan Burnett, the company’s operations director said: “Our priority is to keep our people working at a time when the security industry has such a critical role in supporting law and order and reducing the demand on our police service.”
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“Since receiving the government’s guidance on furlough we have been contacting staff whom we consider may be suitable, prioritising staff who through health or age may carry a higher risk.
“There have also been a number of opportunities arise for security staff whose original posts have gone temporarily and we have been matching staff to those.
“We have not lost a day or an hour in ensuring the best outcomes we can for our staff at this very challenging time including keeping them updated.”
Russel Kerr, the company’s managing director, said: “All staff affected by the coronavirus outbreak have either been re-deployed, are self-isolating or are in the process of being offered furlough.
“This is a live process, and if any of our colleagues feel that they have been missed, they should contact their line manager as soon as possible.”
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