A HIGHBRIDGE food manufacturer said none of its workers are at risk of redundancy after it was criticised for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Last week a video shared by the Guardian sparked outrage online after it showed Bakkavor staff in London being told by a manager that those who stay at home may be sacked.

In a statement issued last week the company said the manager 'confused furloughing with redundancy' and the comments he made were 'inappropriate.'

The firm apologised to staff for the 'miscommunication' and said it is now investigating the matter.

A spokesperson for Bakkavor said no workers at its Highbridge branch are at risk of redundancy but some workers at sites across the country may be furloughed due to the pandemic.

The firm also explained what measures it is taking to protect its workers from coronavirus and keep delivering food across the nation.

"We can confirm that no workers at our Highbridge site are at risk of redundancy," a Bakkavor spokesperson said.

"Our advice to all our staff is to stay at home if they are feeling unwell or believe they have symptoms or if they are self-isolating due to members of their household displaying symptoms – points that were communicated at the staff briefing you have footage from.

"For staff that are fit and able to work, we do need them to come to work. This is essential work and cannot be done from home.

"Food supply at this time is important to the country at large and our staff are ‘key workers’ in helping to ensure supermarket shelves are replenished and families can buy food. We’re working hard to achieve this without putting any of our colleagues at risk.

"We are saddened and concerned to hear that a few colleagues feel under pressure to come to work and we’re putting protocols in place to speak to all staff at their next shift to make it absolutely clear that no colleague should come to work if they feel unwell, are self-isolating or if a family member is unwell."

The manufacturer, which provides food to major supermarkets such as Tesco, Sainsbury's and Marks and Spencers, says a number of different measures are now in place to protect staff.

The firm said they work to strong safety and hygiene controls and these have been heightened since COVID-19 hit the country.

"Bakkavor fully complies with PHE guidelines for food processing plants as part of its guidance to manufacturing and processing businesses" the spokesperson said.

"The UK Government has classified our employees as key workers and as a food business our established controls for managing both people and food safety within our manufacturing operations are robust and naturally provide a strong base to build our COVID-19 controls on.

"All our colleagues are self-certified as fit to work and our normal handwashing procedures, as well as our high levels of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and hygiene, help to ensure a safe working environment.

"We have introduced further controls which include restricted visitor access, a more rigorous return to work procedure, increased hygiene of touchpoints and additional handwashing to complement our already established controls.

"Snoods and balaclavas have been made available to factory workers and we are imminently phasing in visors, which we have been trialled at various sites."