Around 440 BAM staff are being furloughed on full pay over the next few days, which represents 18% of its 2,400 total numbers across its businesses.
A further 200 or so are already self-isolating at home.
BAM has decided that for April any furloughed employees should be paid in full. This means the company will top up their pay from 80% to 100%. No decision has been taken in respect of May.
The board and senior management team have decided to reduce their salaries by 20% from the 1st April and board directors have also chosen to forfeit their annual pay review for 2020.
Chief executive James Wimpenny said: “It is likely that in the coming months we will need to take further steps to protect the long term sustainability of our business. Our priorities are to protect lives and livelihoods so we can further protect the vital jobs that will be so important when the pandemic subsides and the country starts getting back to normal.”
He added: “We have more than 200 colleagues self-isolating or absent from work because they are showing symptoms of Covid-19. We send our thoughts and very best wishes to all these colleagues and their families at this worrying time.”
BAM said that its construction sites that remain open are operating in line with industry and government guidelines by reducing operating levels and enhancing welfare facilities and changing work patterns to help avoid crowded public transport so that social distancing is maintained.
“Our teams continue to work closely with clients and sub-contractors to enable working where it is safe to do so, and the government has expressed its support to the industry in a letter from the secretary of state,” BAM said by way of defence for keeping sites open.
Elsewhere, BAMs teams are also involved in building new NHS Nightingale field hospitals, and rapidly completing coronavirus wards at existing hospitals.
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