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Fashion retailer Penneys said its 5,000 retail staff in the Republic will be paid 80 per cent of their salaries for the coming month as the company avails of the wage support scheme.
The company, owned by Associated British Foods, said on Thursday that it will review the new measure next month.
The company originally committed to pay its employees full salaries for their contracted hours for the two weeks from March 19th following the closure of all of the company’s stores.
A spokeswoman said that it will continue to pay its staff for the coming month as its stores remain closed. The Government’s scheme will support up to 70 per cent of the payment while Penneys said it will pay the balance.
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“Our people are fundamental to the success of our business and we are proud of the resilience and dedication they have shown in recent weeks as we navigate the significant challenges we face as a result of Covid-19,” a spokeswoman said.
This week the company said it had put on hold talks to take two floors in the Republic’s biggest shopping centre, Dundrum Town Centre, as it grapples with the effects of the pandemic.
That follows its announcement last week when it said it would suspend rent payments on its 37 Irish stores as it shut along with all other retailers deemed “non essential”.
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