Business moguls Mike Ashley and Tim Martin have been given until Friday to answer MPs (Picture: PA)

Calls have been made for companies to do more to ensure the safety of their staff amidst the coronavirus outbreak as many were forced to commute for non-essential work.

Yesterday office workers, estate agents and warehouse staff told Metro.co.uk they were worried they could catch or spread Covid-19 after being told by bosses to come in as normal. This was despite Boris Johnson announcing a nationwide lockdown on Monday evening in which he said people should only travel to work if is ‘absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home’.

Now Sports Direct and Newcastle owner Mike Ashley and Wetherspoons boss Tim Martin have been ordered to explain to Parliament how they will be protecting their staff by the end of the week, the chair of the Business Select Committee says. Rachel Reeves said it is ‘crucial’ that the firms ‘ensure their workers are properly protected and get the pay to which they are entitled’.



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Both companies have faced heavy criticism over their handling of staff welfare, with conflicting messages over pay and working hours. Mr Ashley’s Frasers Group has been attacked for telling workers at Sports Direct they must still turn up despite the Government shutdown, claiming its staff were ‘key workers’.

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Boris Johnson pours a pint with JD Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin, who has told staff they won’t be paid until the Government’s Job Retention Scheme is in place (Picture: WPA)

Mike Ashley is being questioned after Sports Direct staff were told to come in amid the lockdown (Picture: Getty Images)

Staff at his Jack Wills chain were also in work on Tuesday. The issue was raised at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, to which Boris Johnson said the company should ‘obey the rules’ or ‘expect the consequences’.

Mr Martin’s Wetherspoons chain wrote to workers telling them they will no longer be paid, saying he would only start payments again once the Government’s scheme to cover 80% of wages is in place. This is despite the Treasury saying grants for people’s pay could be backdated to March 1.

In a letter to the pubs’ chief Ms Reeves asked for ‘detailed information about the measures that Wetherspoons is taking to support its employees during the current coronavirus crisis’.

She added: ‘This is a national emergency, and governments, citizens and businesses are taking unprecedented measures to protect lives and livelihoods. I was therefore disappointed to read that you have not indicated whether you intend to cover the wages of your staff until Government support comes through.

Jack Wills staff were also seen in yesterday, despite their work being non-essential (Picture: PA)

Tim Martin is being asked if he will pay staff the remaining 20% not covered by the Government (Picture: AFP)

‘This is despite other companies in your industry guaranteeing that they will pay their staff for at least eight weeks. Furthermore, you also seem to have suggested that when the Government do pay 80% of your staff’s wages, you might not pay the other 20%.

‘Finally, I am deeply concerned that while you encourage your workforce to consider working for supermarkets, you note that if they do, you will give them “first preference” if they “want to come back”.’

Questions to Tim Martin How many of your staff will be furloughed

Will you pay your staff’s wages until the Government’s money comes through?

Will you pay the remaining 20% of your staff’s wages when support from the Treasury begins?

How will you pay and treat staff that you employ who are on zero-hour contracts?

Will your staff have to reapply for their jobs when the Covid-19 crisis is over?

Raising concerns in Parliament, Newcastle Upon Tyne Central MP Chi Onwurah said: ‘Not all businesses are doing the right thing and I am particularly thinking of Mike Ashley forcing workers into empty Sports Direct shops.’

Johnson said: ‘The instruction to the gentleman in question, and indeed every business, is to follow what the Government has said, to obey the rules or to expect the consequences.



‘That is the best way to look after not just their employees but their businesses as well.’

In a letter from the select committee Ms Reeves asks Mr Ashley for reassurances about staff welfare at Sports Direct, House of Fraser and Newcastle United Football Club.

Questions to Mike Ashley What is the proportion of staff designated as ‘furloughed workers’ on full-time, part time and zero-hours contracts?

How many members of staff will be made redundant?

Can you confirm Sports Direct, House of Fraser and Newcastle United will continue to pay staff’s wages in full until funding from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme becomes available?

Will any extra staff taken on for deliveries be paid the National Living Wage?

Both letters to the two business magnates are signed: ‘Given the gravity of the situation, I would appreciate a reply by Friday 27 March.’

Tube trains in London were packed to the brim yesterday despite Johnson declaring a lockdown the night before, while construction workers forced to come in said they had doubts that social distancing guidelines could be followed. The Government was accused of sending mixed messages after Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said jobs which ‘keep the economy moving forward’ could also be counted as essential as well as key-worker roles such as police officers and nurses.

Construction workers at a site in Canary Wharf after the PM put the UK on lockdown (Picture: PA)

Police speak to two construction workers today in Manchester (Picture: Getty Images)

Despite being able to stay open during the lockdown, major developers have started shutting down sites on their own volition to protect the safety of their workers. Meanwhile estate agents Dexters say they are still telling people to come into their sales and lettings offices while non-essential work is ‘wound down’.

The TUC said there should be more specific guidance on what jobs fall into the essential services category and that employers must be told their staff should not be travelling to work if their job is non-essential. Workers should also be reassured they will not face disciplinary action or dismissal if they stay at home, the union organisation said.


Calling on companies not to put profits before people’s lives, general secretary Frances O’Grady said: ‘No-one should be sacked for following official instructions and staying home.

‘To end any confusion, Government should provide specific instruction on what jobs fall into the essential services category.

‘If companies continue to flout the rules, they shouldn’t just be held accountable in the court of public opinion, the Government must intervene to make them close their doors.’

The TUC also suggested staggering arrival and departure times to reduce crowding on public transport, rearranging work stations to ensure people can stay two metres apart, and splitting shifts so fewer people are attending work at any one time.