Waitrose supermarkets in the UK is making its workers pay back the time they spend self-isolating due to coronavirus, DailyMail reports.
The company told their staff to pay for up to two weeks of leave if they are self-isolating or doing so to protect someone else in their household.
Employees with severe underlying health problems are currently ‘shielding’ for 12 weeks and are unable to work or leave the house at all.
A whistleblower who works for the upmarket food store told The National they fear infectious staff will return to work and risk spreading the virus to others because they ‘can’t afford’ to be off.
Meanwhile, employees of another supermarket, John Lewis, who have been drafted in to help out at Waitrose while their stores are closed, are receiving 100 per cent of their salaries if they are off sick with symptoms.
The anonymous employee told the newspaper that;
Lots of people who have worked with Waitrose for ages and who are self isolating or shielding family members are now getting phone calls saying they will have to pay time back.
It’s just a massive kick in the teeth. Most of the staff are really honest but now they will have to lie and come in to work even if they are not supposed to or pay back between 74 and 78 hours if they are full time and self-isolate for a fortnight.
Waitrose is owned by the John Lewis Partnership, which was forced to put nearly 1,400 staff on furlough after John Lewis closed 50 stores nationwide.
Some have been drafted in to help at Waitrose, but the whistleblower claims they are not faced with the same ‘punitive’ payback measures as their colleagues.
John Lewis staff who are ‘shielding’ at home will get 100 per cent of their salaries for the 12 weeks they are off work.
But the Waitrose whistleblower said their colleagues are ‘furious’ that the two halves of the company are being treated differently and has escalated a complaint to senior management.
One Waitrose employee wrote on Twitter;
Waitrose, John Lewis were in helping us at Waitrose stores and now they’ve been told they can stay safe at home with 80 per cent of their pay. Whilst us Waitrose staff have to go into work and risk ours and our families lives… how is this far? I thought we were ‘one’ partnership?
A shopper simply wrote; “Waitrose, treat your staff better” while another person posted; “Shame on you clawing back salaries for staff self-isolating.”
