Cancel rail strikes to save Xmas party season, pleads Fullers pub boss

Railway strikes in the run-up to Christmas will devastate office parties and deal a devastating blow to the hospitality industry, the boss of one of Britain’s largest pub chains has warned.

Fuller’s chief Simon Emeny described the planned strikes as “a cloud on the horizon” that threatened to derail the first festive season without Covid restrictions since 2019.

He said: ‘I am calling on the RMT to cancel these strikes and ensure that the hospitality industry can have the Christmas they deserve.’

The railway union has planned strikes for four days in December and four days in January.

UK Hospitality, which represents pubs, bars and restaurants, said the strikes will cost the industry £1.5bn in lost business and says they are ‘essential’ strikes that will be averted.

Speaking to the BBC, Emeny said: ‘Christmas bookings are absolutely excellent.

“If you have an office and you have a Christmas party planned in a pub in London, it’s going to be a big occasion, the first time you’ve got your teams back together since 2019. And now people are very concerned about whether they’re going to who still hold events.’

Emeny said the staff in dire need of extra hours and tips will be the ones “suffering the most.”

But he believes the strikes will be canceled or postponed. He added, “What we need is a quick fix, not a last minute fix, because people will have changed their plans by then.”

British Beer and Pub Association boss Emma McClarkin said the strikes will be a “serious blow”.

She said pubs desperately need a boost and the dispute should be resolved as soon as possible.

RMT leader Mick Lynch has blamed the government for ‘prolonging the dispute’.

He said ministers should compensate catering companies for losses suffered.