By Ian McConnell
STAFF at the Kimpton Blythswood Square and Grand Central hotels in Glasgow have been told they are at risk of redundancy.
Parent company InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) said last night that staff at its Kimpton Charlotte Square, InterContinental The George and Crowne Plaza properties in Edinburgh had also been told they were at risk of redundancy. They are, like employees at Kimpton Blythswood Square and the Grand Central, also going through a collective consultation process.
There is no indication of the likely number of redundancies at the hotels. It is understood no details of the restructuring have been confirmed, with the plans very much proposals at this stage, in a fast-changing environment.
The coronavirus crisis has forced hotels across Scotland and the UK as a whole to close, with huge numbers of employees furloughed. Most of the 200-plus staff of the Kimpton Blythswood Square have been furloughed under the UK Government’s coronavirus job retention scheme. Large numbers of staff at the Grand Central, Kimpton Charlotte Square, InterContinental The George and Crowne Plaza properties have also been furloughed.
A spokesman for the Kimpton Blythswood Square hotel said: “This is a very difficult time for our industry, and we have done everything to protect and retain jobs for as long as possible. Our hotel is currently closed and, while we are looking forward to welcoming guests back when we can reopen, it will take time for travel and tourism to return to pre-coronavirus levels. As a result, we have launched a consultation to restructure our team, which unfortunately is likely to involve some redundancies.”
Trade union Unite wrote on Facebook: “Kimpton Blythswood Square hotel has just issued collective notice of consultation for redundancy to its 200-plus workforce. They could continue to use the job retention scheme for most staff after opening but instead they…choose to cut costs and possibly terminate loyal workers in the middle of a global pandemic.”
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