Wetherspoons boss Tim Martin has said staff may face delays in being paid during the coronavirus pandemic and advised them to get a job at Tesco. 

The pub chain employs roughly 40,000 people across the UK, but has been forced to shut down after Boris Johnson ordered the closure of non-essential shops, restaurants and public houses in a bid to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak.

In a video to staff, Martin said: "Hi everyone, I’m very sorry about the situation that has occurred with our pubs. They’ve been shut as you know.

"Unprecedented in the last 40 years and it puts everyone in a terribly difficult position.

"And I know you’re all sitting there wondering what the hell is happening and over the weekend I had lots of phone calls with different people and we’re trying to sort it out as best we can in this highly unusual situation.

"The good news is the government has undertaken to underwrite people’s wages for an indefinite amount of timve, so that’s great because we’ve got no money coming in through the tills, which is not something we’ve ever planned for.

"The Government has promised to pay about 80% of wages. They’ll probably be pretty slow about paying it, so there may be some delays for which I also apologise, but I feel sure they are going to come through on their promise."

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He went on to advise staff to look for jobs in the supermarket sector, because food stores will remain open during the crisis. 

"I know that almost all our trade now has gone to supermarkets. Not only our trade, but the trade from cafes, leisure centres and restaurants.

"So we have had lots of calls from supermarkets, Tesco alone want 20,000 people to join them. That’s half the number of people who work in our pubs.

"If I’m honest, I say you can get the furlough payments and stay at home.

"If you’re offered a job at a supermarket, many of you will want to do that. If you think it’s a good idea, do it.

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"I can completely understand it. If you’ve worked for us before I promise you we will give you first preference if you want to come back.

"We will obviously completely understand if you don’t want to wait around for us to reopen but deeply appreciate your work."

The misspelt hashtag #boycottweatherspoons has now shot to the top of the Twitter trending charts as people vent their rage at Martin's statement. 

Stuart Braithwaite, lead guitarist of the Glasgow band Mogwai, tweeted: "Anyone who’d put a penny in this w*****'s pocket needs watching."