Glasgow Life, a non-profit organization that manages cultural and sports facilities for the City Council, announced that it would lose about 500 jobs.

The charity, funded partly through taxpayers’ cash, said it had lost £38m due to the closing of dozens of its venues during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Attractions managed by Glasgow Life for the council include Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, People’s Palace, Riverside Museum and Mitchell Library.

According to the BBC website, Glasgow Life said that the layoffs will be implemented “over time” and will not involve strong sanctions. Glasgow Life now plans to target early retirement plans and voluntary layoffs.

A spokesperson for the charity told the BBC: “This cost-saving strategy is a vital part of the process of recovery Glasgow Life has been forced to undertake by the global pandemic.”

Glasgow City Council’s statement supported the recovery package through its £100m funding guarantee for the next five years. However, it stressed it was “unrealistic to expect that it can raise significant additional income this year that will support the reopening of venues beyond the 91 already announced”.

The spokesperson added: “Glasgow Life will be a very different organisation at the end of this period. “We are asking staff for flexibility during this process and are regularly updating them through internal communications and briefings from their managers, and unions are also regularly updated.”

Source: The Scotsman