Coronavirus: Fifth of workers fear they will lose jobs within six months after pandemic

Poll finds around three-quarters expect recession in UK due to outbreak

One in five workers - the equivalent of around 6 million people - believe they could lose their jobs within six months in the wake of the coronavirus epidemic, a new survey has suggested.

And the Survation poll for left-wing thinktank Class (Centre for Labour and Social Studies) found that 60 per cent of workers fear that they would be unable to cover their rent or mortgage for more than three months if they lost their jobs.

Around 70 per cent of those questioned said they expected a recession in the UK as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.

And more than three-quarters (77 per cent) of those predicting recession said they expected it to be worse than the downturn which followed the financial crash of 2018, with 73 per cent saying it would last more than a year.

Some 19 percent of workers - and 25 percent of the self-employed and those aged 18-24 - reported that they felt ‘somewhat or very unconfident’ that they will keep their current job for the next six months.

An overwhelming 65 per cent said that in the wake of the pandemic, Boris Johnson’s government should prioritise investment in public services to bolster economic recovery, against 22 per cent who said it should impose cuts in order to repay debts built up during the crisis.

And large majorities supported pay rises for NHS staff (78 per cent), emergency workers (76 per cent), carers (75 per cent), supermarket staff (70 per cent), delivery drivers (65 per cent) and bus and train drivers (63 per cent).

At the same time 69 per cent of those polled supported taxing the wealthy more in response to the coronavirus pandemic, while 57 per cent said the government should take action to reduce inequality, against just 9 per cent who said it should not.

Class director Faiza Shaheen said the survey, published alongside the think tank’s report Coronavirus and the Workers Emergency, showed that chancellor Rishi Sunak must do more than simply extend the furlough scheme, which is currently due to run until October.

She called for a new job creation scheme and substantial fiscal stimulus to enable the UK to grow its way out of recession with well-paid green jobs.

“It is shocking that over half of all workers fear they are so close to being without a roof over their heads,” said Dr Shaheen.

“Millions of people – including those now on Universal Credit and those not qualifying for the furlough scheme – will be increasingly desperate as their mortgage and rent holidays end.

“Protecting workers now requires us looking past emergency measures to a recovery plan. Coronavirus has put society in an X-ray machine to reveal its structural weakness and is now magnifying existing inequalities.

“It is up to the Chancellor to seize this opportunity, to build a bridge from the furlough scheme and unemployment benefits to green jobs and a fairer society.”

The Survation survey found that 49 per cent of respondents said they were currently claiming benefits entirely or partly due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Around half (51 per cent) said their hours had reduced because of lockdown, 23 per cent said they had had trouble feeding their families and 26 per cent difficulty paying rent or mortgage.

Survation interviewed 2,026 British adults between 22 and 25 April.