Mr.Talha Posted July 3, 2021 Posted July 3, 2021 Becky Salisbury and her husband David were in the car on Sunday when they got the news: one of the staff at their pub, the Alford Arms in Berkhamsted, had tested positive for Covid. So, after a rollercoaster year, overhauling how they work and installing every hygiene measure they could think of, the pub is now closed again, for 10 days. "It's frustrating," says Becky. "Having made some profit recently with nice weather and a good garden, unfortunately it's all going to go down the pan." Becky and David are far from the only ones in this situation. Pubs and restaurants across the country are finding operating day-to-day a minefield. It only takes one case on site, and the NHS Test and Trace alerts come thick and fast, instructing staff to isolate. Without them, venues can't open. It isn't sustainable, the industry says, especially as cases continue to rise so rapidly. The government says self-isolation remains an essential part of the effort to control the spread of the virus. A million more off furlough as scheme winds down Ian Payne, chairman of the nationwide Stonegate group of pubs, wrote on social media that the chain has around 1,000 people off, because they had been alerted by NHS Test and Trace, and 15 sites closed, because the management team were self-isolating. The Wetherspoon pub chain said six members of its staff had tested positive, leading to 69 further employees being required to self-isolate. Nick Collins, chief executive of the chain Loungers, which operates 173 cafe-bars, has also had to temporarily close some sites, and reallocate staff between venues. "It's really challenging," he said, but he now fears that it "could get worse" as rates of the virus continue to rise.
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