David Beckham leads football stars in infinity applause for key workers… after Victoria reverses her decision to furlough 30 staff from fashion label
David Beckham led a slew of football stars clapping for key workers and the NHS on Thursday night.
The footballer, 44, took to Instagram to share a video of his ‘infinity applause’ and was joined by the likes of Michael Owen, Harry Maguire and Pelé.
David’s post comes hours after Victoria abandoned plans to seek a government bailout to furlough 30 members of staff at her fashion brand following a major backlash.
David Beckham led a slew of football stars clapping for key workers and the NHS on Thursday night
David rose to his feet as he kicked off the applause video, with a legion of famous faces from the football world following his home clip.
The footballer said: ‘To all the healthcare and key workers who keep working like true heroes an infinite applause. #HumanitysHeroes taking a fight against #COVID19 #WeWillWin #FIFA’.
The family have returned to social media after Victoria announced her decision to reverse furloughing staff from her fashion brand.
Controversial: David’s post comes hours after Victoria abandoned plans to seek a government bailout to furlough 30 members of staff at her fashion brand following a major backlash
Clapping for NHS: The footballer, 44, took to Instagram to share a video of his ‘infinity applause’ and was joined by the likes of Michael Owen (pictured), Harry Maguire and Pelé
Grateful: Harry Maguire (L) and Magdalena Erikkson (R) joined in on the applause
The former Spice Girl, whose family is worth £335million, had planned to use the Government’s Covid-19 scheme to pay 80 per cent of the wages of some of her staff.
The fashion brand, which employs 120 people, sent letters to 30 members of staff warning them that they were going to be furloughed under the Government’s scheme for two months.
She told The Guardian: ‘We will not now be drawing on the government furlough scheme. At the beginning of the lockdown the shareholders agreed with senior management to furlough a small proportion of staff. At that point we didn’t know how long the lockdown might last or its likely impact on the business.
Thank you! Pelé thanked the key workers in the moving video
‘The welfare of my team and our business means everything to me.’
It is understood the firm’s application would have cost taxpayers £150,000.
The firm denied the U-turn was a result of the public backlash and instead insisted the board ‘now believe that with the support of our shareholders, we can navigate through this crisis without drawing from the furlough scheme’.
In a statement, the company said: ‘Victoria Beckham Ltd has been working hard to protect its people and, while adjusting to the impact of COVID-19 and the government lockdown, our decision to furlough a small number of our staff seemed the most appropriate option in keeping with many other businesses.
‘The situation is dynamic, and, with the support of our shareholders, we now believe we can navigate through this crisis without drawing from the government furlough scheme.
‘Our application was made in the best interests of trying to protect our staff, and that is still our absolute focus. We are doing everything we can to ensure we can achieve that without using government assistance.’
Other celebrities including Jamie Oliver and Dragons Den star Peter Jones have also sought taxpayer assistance for their staff.
Reversing her decision: Victoria, who is worth £335million, had planned to use the Government’s Covid-19 scheme to pay 80 per cent of the wages of some of her staff