dylan mayer, front of house at the garrick inn, stratford-upon-avon

Working front of house during a pandemic had its challenges, says Dylan Mayer. But lockdown with a young family to support was worse. Which is why he was grateful for the Support Fund...

 

I work in The Garrick Inn, the oldest pub in Stratfordupon- Avon. It’s a lovely building in a prime location in the centre of Stratford with a really great team. I only joined Greene King about six weeks before the very first lockdown, so it was a strange time all round. Not only did I have to get used to the Greene King way of doing things, but, also the Covid way of working.

It’s not my first job in this industry. I’ve worked in hospitality for about six years, on and off. I work at the pub while studying to be a railway engineer as I’ve got a young family to support. When the first lockdown was announced I was unable to drive and we live in a small village quite a long way from supermarkets, hospitals and things like that. So when the Prime Minister announced the country was closing down my first thought was, ‘What do we do now?’.

We had to rely on my partner’s mum to do all our shopping and I couldn’t see my family as they’re in Stoke-on-Trent and we weren’t allowed to travel. Being isolated was my main concern at that point.

In Tiers

During the first lockdown the financial pressure wasn’t so great because we immediately got an email from the directors and Nick, our CEO, telling us that we’d get paid for the next few weeks. It was so reassuring and meant that things were actually OK and I got to spend a lot of time with my then oneyear- old daughter. Compared to my previous employers, who had no empathy for people with young families, and moaned if I booked time off to take my daughter for her injections, Greene King is just amazing. There’s no comparison.

So, when we returned to work in July 2020, I loved it. Great atmosphere and a brilliant team, serving really good food – we were so busy with Eat Out To Help Out, but the team just pulled together. And then bookings started to drop off. One night it got to 9pm and we had seven staff serving just one table. I was also getting concerned about the tier system.

People weren’t supposed to travel, but we didn’t know if customers were coming in from outside areas to visit the pub. It wasn’t enjoyable going to work worrying about who you’re going to meet that day, and whether they were really bothered about the virus.

Support fund assistance

In the winter time the money worries kicked in. I’d cut back my hours so I could fit in studying, but then another lockdown was announced. On reduced hours, and with wages based on average earnings, we had to get by on £350 a month. And we were expecting another child. It was also Christmas time. Stress levels from December 2020 to February 2021 just went through the roof.

With another baby due in spring 2021, I applied for the Support Fund. I didn’t expect to get it, so it was a huge relief when about a week later I heard that I was eligible. I might have to worry about Covid and whether I’d be allowed in the hospital when our baby was born, but at least I didn’t have to worry about how I was going to buy food. In fact, that’s exactly what I did spend the money on – and a few bits for the new baby. The money also covered my daughter’s nursery fees.

Team Help

Mentally, it was incredibly challenging living and working through this time. Like a terrible rollercoaster. In fact, the whole of the third lockdown was just the worst. But my manager Chris and his wife were so supportive. We met up a few times and Chris and I went cycling together. I had the rest of the team on WhatsApp and the Greene King mental health and welfare team were in touch to see how things were going. The company was amazing. I really couldn’t fault them.

It’s fair to say that Greene King did everything a company could do to support us and I was really looking forward to going back to the pub and seeing everyone. It’s a really nice place to work.