Britain’s night-time economy has shed 700,000 jobs in the last six years as nightclubs and bars warn they face closure from the surge in energy bills and squeeze on revelers.
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(Bloomberg) — Britain’s night-time economy has shed 700,000 jobs in the last six years as nightclubs and bars warn they face closure from the surge in energy bills and squeeze on revelers.
Employment in cultural and leisure activities and sectors that support the industry has shrunk by almost a 10th since peaking in 2018, the Office for National Statistics revealed.
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The figures indicate the scale of the challenge to companies that draw much of their business at night. Many were struggling before the pandemic from rising rents and increasing competition for the leisure time of consumers, and a surge in energy prices since lockdowns made the finances of many companies unsustainable.
Surging inflation pushed up wages for workers while draining the spending power of consumers, dealing another blow to an industry that remained fragile after lockdowns to control the coronavirus.
Staff in night-time cultural and leisure activities – including bars, hotels, sports and restaurants – has tumbled by almost 90,000 to 1.42 million between the peak in 2019 and 2022. Sectors that support the industry also suffered heavy job losses. Workers have been added to the sectors since the pandemic lows but staffing levels have still not covered to their pre-Covid peak.
The total numbers working in night-time industries – including anyone who typically does their job at night– have fallen from a peak of 9.5 million in 2016 to 8.8 million last year.
The Night Time Industries Association estimates a third of nightclubs have been lost since Covid struck, warning that it is also heavily impacted by mounting cost pressures.
Its Chief Executive Officer Michael Kill said last week that his members are “at the greatest risk under the current crisis” and are facing a “challenging trading environment.”
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