Pandemic | HR guru Josh Bersin: 'Layoffs can be deadly'

The outbreak of the coronavirus has left many employers fearful that their business may not survive, which has led to dramatic staff cuts over the past few weeks.

Sandwich shop chain Pret a Manger recently reduced staff working hours and pay by a quarter across its 550 stores, meanwhile, staff working for the Broughton arm of Cineworld claimed they found out they had been sacked via Twitter.

Similarly, Trump Hotels, Marriott International and Compass Coffee have also made staff cuts due to the outbreak. This is despite Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s pledge to businesses to not remove staff due to coronavirus.

During a previous press briefing, the PM said: “I want businesses to stick by employees as we're going to stick by them. We're going to really make sure to look after the people who suffer economic consequences of what we’re asking them, we're going to look after the people first.