Seven in ten workers furloughed

The full impact of the lockdown on the live arts and entertainment scene has been revealed in new research.

Income across the sector has dropped by 86 per cent, according to analysis from money.co.uk, compared to an average of 64 per cent across other industries.

Half of the businesses within the arts, entertainment and recreation sector that were forced to shut down have no plans to reopen imminently, while in other industries, 90 per cent of firms have already resumed operations.

The figures were revealed as the government announced a vital £1.6billion lifeline for the industry. 

According to money.co.uk, without this injection 70 per cent of theatres across the country would be risk of closing by the end of the year.

 The percentage of workers furloughed within arts, entertainment and recreation stands at 70 per cent, compared to  an average of 23 per cent overall across the country. 

Despite the struggle, employers are trying their best to top up employees’ furlough pay. In fact, 57 per cent of employers in the sector are topping up their staff pay, which is second only to the education sector.

Salman Haqqi, personal finance expert at money.co.uk says: "Following months of campaigning, the news that the government is pushing £1.57b into arts and heritage organisations is a huge relief to the industry. 

‘But many are still greatly concerned about the future of the industry.  With the industry revealing that many live performance venues will not open until at least early 2021, and furlough due to end in October, hopefully some of the funds will be allocated to protecting employees’ income too.’

Published: 6 Jul 2020