The F&B sector is one of the worst hit sectors during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Another company that has felt the impact is Qian Xi Group of Restaurants.

Qian Xi own 10 outlets across Singapore, including Joy Garden in SAFRA Jurong, where a cluster of 47 cases was formed after a dinner function on Feb. 15.

In a Mar. 23 letter being circulated online, all managers and staff were allegedly requested to go on no-pay leave from Apr. 1 to Jun. 30, 2020.

The letter was supposedly sent out on behalf on Tony Foo, the group's CEO.

According to the letter, business has been "very badly affected" during the period.

There have been no reservations for April, and the restaurants are experiencing daily cancellations from customers.

Foo also foresees zero bookings for May and June.

To "mitigate huge losses" at Qian Xi Group, the management has made the "tough decision" of putting all staff on three months of no-pay leave.

The company understands that workers may want to resign to seek employment elsewhere, and added that foreign workers will have their work permit cancelled should they do so.

Employees with queries are advised to speak to their restaurant manager.

Unanswered messages and calls

While a representative for the restaurant initially told Mothership to leave a number, multiple attempts to validate the claims of the letter have gone unanswered for the past two days.

When Mothership reached out with a separate number, the spokesperson said that it was "not convenient" to talk.

Top image via dreamfusion on OpenRice, Qian Xi Group