JDW to invest £11m into ‘safe reopening’

22-May-2020 - Last updated on 13-Jul-2020 at 11:50 GMT

Clean regime: JDW has revealed its hygiene measures for when it is safe to reopen pubs

JD Wetherspoon (JDW) has said it is investing £11m in a bid to ensure its staff and customers are safe before its pubs reopen.

Social distancing measures will mean there will be two full-time staff per pub, and slightly more for bigger pubs, who will regularly clean surfaces and touch points throughout the pubs.

JDW stated it will open its 875 pubs across the UK and Republic of Ireland, when it has the official go-ahead from the relevant government.

The pub behemoth said it had undertaken extensive employee consultation and had discussions with many suppliers and contractors, as well as referring to UKHospitality guidelines to draw up its plans.

Reopening plan

Hygiene measures include:

Screens at the till point
Screens to create seating areas where it is not possible to separate tables to social distancing requirements
Gloves, masks and protective eye wear will be available for staff
Employees will be able to elect whether they wear them or not, subject to government guidelines
There will be an average of 10 hand sanitiser dispensers around the pub, including at the entrance for customers and staff to use
Every member of staff will need to complete and sign a daily health assessment questionnaire to confirm they are fit to work, including having their temperature taking using a digital thermometer
Dedicated staff will monitor the pub at all times in order to maintain social distancing standards and a member of staff will be on the door at peak times
There will be a separate entrance and exit where possible at the pubs
Customer entry and exit will be marked out by floor stickers and/or barriers and there will be clear printed information providing guidance for customers as they enter
Each pub will have a member of staff working full time (two or more staff per pub to cover all opening hours) to sanitise all the contact points during opening hours including door handles, allergen information screens, card payment machines and hand rails
Customers will be asked to use the JDW order and pay app where possible or, pay at the bar using a credit or debit card and contactless, although cash will also be accepted
Staff will hand over all drinks holding the base of the glass and, when ordered by the app, they will be delivered to the table on a tray and placed on the table using the base of the glass
Food will be delivered to the table by a member of floor staff
Pub menus will be slightly reduced and will provide sachets of condiments rather than bottles
Usual opening hours will remain the same (on average, this is 8am until 12midnight Sunday to Thursday and 8am to 1am Friday and Saturday)
All staff will receive full training and briefing on the new way of running the pubs

Prepared for announcement

This follows the company hoping its pubs would reopen in June.

But JDW chief executive John Hutson said: “At present, the Government has not confirmed any reopening dates for pubs.

“However, it is important we are prepared for any announcement. We have spent a number of weeks consulting with staff, who work in our pubs, as well as area managers in order to draw up our plan.

“We have received more than 2,500 suggestions from our staff. The safety of our staff and customers is paramount.”