Coronavirus allegedly forces B&H to furlough 20% of its employees

According to a recent report, B&H Photo & Electronics recently furloughed around 20% of employees. The major electronics retailer managed to postpone the decision for weeks, but it was eventually forced to do it due to the coronavirus crisis and the resulting lockdown.

The New York Post shared the report, writing that B&H furloughed “400 of its 2,000 employees on Wednesday,” citing the sources close to the company. B&H’s human resources director Izzy Friedman reportedly said that the company “waited as long as possible” before making the decision. He added that the company “had been paying and providing benefits for affected workers through the Passover holiday break, and beyond to make this easier.” As far as I know, many companies in Serbia have come up with a similar solution, too.

According to The Post, B&H closed its NYC store in 420 Ninth Ave. at the corner of West 34th Street on 16 March. However, the customers can still order their items and pick them up at the side entrance within 30 minutes of placing an order. “The B&H NYC SuperStore will remain closed until further notice,” B&H notes on its website.

“We continue to operate our warehouses at reduced hours with extraordinary safety and sanitary procedures to minimize risks. Our customer service, phone and all office teams continue to work from home. Our employees are determined to continue serving customers when we are needed most.”

For now, there is no further information about the change in staff and any related news. We have contacted a B&H spokesperson for more details and we’ll update the article if we hear from them.

DIYP approached B&H and was told that B&H does not have an official comment on the article.

[via DPReview; image credits: Nigel Morris]