TGI Fridays will pay its workers the money they are due after being made redundant, despite reports it had refused.
The restaurant chain made over 1,000 roles redundant last week after it closed 35 branches. Around 2,400 jobs were saved when 51 branches were bought by Breal Capital and Calveton UY, which own high-end restaurant chain D&D London.
However, a bid to save the rest of the restaurants failed, and workers were told they were being made redundant via a video call from head office. Some found out through social media platforms or turned up to work to find the restaurant locked, according to reports.
The Unite union claimed its members were told they would not receive wages, holiday pay or tips. Angry former workers aired their frustrations on TikTok and WhatsApp chats and Unite threatened legal action.
In an email to affected workers, TGI Fridays has now told them they will receive the money they are owed.
It said: “As a result of asset realisations made early in the administration, the company is in a position to make an early settlement of certain claims that would otherwise rank as preferential claims in the administration estate.
“As a consequence, the joint administrators intend to make funds available to pay the arrears of wages (including gratuities) and accrued holiday pay up to and including 7 October 2024.”
Unite lead organiser Bryan Simpson called the treatment of workers during the process “a national disgrace”.
He added: “We shall be continuing with legal action to demand compensation for the company’s failure to consult their workers.”
TGI Fridays opened its first restaurant in New York in 1965, and its first UK restaurant in Birmingham two decades later.
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