MORE than 100 staff at two Glasgow theatres have been left without pay for a month after they closed due to Covid restrictions, Glasgow Live has reported. 

Around 150 staff working at the King's Theatre and Theatre Royal who have zero-hour and casual contracts with ATG Theatres are without wages as they wait for the venues to reopen. 

Theatre workers told Glasgow Live: "Theatres had to close from Christmas eve until (hopefully) January 23.

"We of course understand why this needed to happen and fully support the decision for theatre closures to help stop the spread of the virus.

"During this time ATG Theatres made the decision that they would not pay zero/casual workers as we would not be able to be called for work during this time frame and as a result of this, we will be left without a months worth of pay."

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Today, Scottish Labour Leader Anas Sarwar criticised what he called the Government's "lack of urgency" to provide financial support for workers, referring to the theatre staff. 

He said: "Too many businesses are still teetering on the brink and too many workers and too many workers have found themselves waiting for weeks with no support. 

"Just one example from my home city where the First Minister needs to go further now.

"More than 100 staff working at two Glasgow theatres have been left without pay for an entire month."

He added: "These workers have bills to pay and families to feed now."

At the start of the year, the Scottish Government announced a financial package worth £31.5million for organisations that lost income due to the cancellation or deferral of performances or cultural activity. 

Applications for the Cancellation Fund for Cultural Organisation are expected to open on Wednesday, January 26, with details announced tomorrow. 

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A spokesperson for King's Theatre and Theatre Royal told Glasgow Live: "When the Scottish Government announced restrictions on indoor events on December 21, Glasgow theatres were put in the position of having to close their doors from December 26.

"This meant, regrettably, that any staff on hourly flexible contracts could not be called for shifts because there were now no performances.

"In order to mitigate the impact on individuals, staff were paid holiday for the period.

"These restrictions have had an enormous impact on theatres and other indoor venues, effectively closing them down at the busiest time of year and turning them into loss-making businesses.

"ATG has been in constant contact with the Scottish Government and Creative Scotland to lobby for urgent funding to compensate for losses brought about by the closure.

"At the time of writing, we still await details of the funding and who will be eligible to apply."

Nicola Sturgeon announced today that additional restrictions on indoor events, that were introduced last month, will be removed from Monday, January 24.