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After much criticism, the former Spice Girl finally went back on her decision to furlough 30 of her fashion brand’s employees in the middle of a health and economic crisis.
Victoria Beckham sparked a controversy at the end of April when she announced that her ready-to-wear brand would resort to the financing plan launched by British Finance Minister Rishi Sunak during the coronavirus pandemic.
She had in fact declared her intention to apply furlough procedures for 30 of the 120 employees of her label, and this for two months, a budget that would have cost 75,000 pounds (85,000 euros) to British taxpayers according to the American magazine Forbes.
The 46-year-old designer, whose fortune is estimated at 335 million pounds (385 million euros) and who has just bought an apartment in Miami worth 17 million pounds (20 million euros) with her husband, quickly became the talk of the town and incurred the wrath of the general public.
British anchor Piers Morgan accused Victoria Beckham of using “taxpayers’ money that the National Health Service (NHS)“, the British health system, “desperately needs“, calling her a “prima donna millionaire and pampered”.
Olivier Dowden, the British Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, publicly commented on the scandal, saying that “every business must ask itself whether it really needs to use taxpayers’ money“.
The former British singer, ex Posh Spice, has reportedly not been well since the start of this controversy, which she deems “unfair“, she is said to be “furious and stressed” according to the Daily Mail newspaper and to have experienced “the worst week ever” according to the tabloid Sun.
On Thursday, April 30, she then announced to the British newspaper The Guardian that she had reversed her decision, claiming that she was taking the well-being of her staff very seriously.
“We will not rely on the government’s leave plan. At the beginning of the containment, the shareholders had agreed with management to lay off a small proportion of the staff. At that stage, we did not know how long the lockout would last or its likely impact on the company. The well-being of my team and our company means everything to me. (…) We have now reconsidered this option and accept that there is a better way forward for our company. These are tough times and tough decisions and we don’t always do things right – all we can say is that we are trying to protect our business and our people.” she said.
It should be noted, however, that the brand has been in financial difficulty for several months, aggravated by the current environment.
Read also > Coronavirus crisis: Hermes will not increase its dividend or resort to short-time working
Featured Photo : © Victoria Beckham / Facebook[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
