Myer will close all of its department stores in Australia and stand down 10,000 staff members for at least a month as it battles through the coronavirus pandemic.
Bosses said the department giant would close its doors on Sunday, but would still run online.
It is the latest victim of the coronavirus retail fallout, which is leaving tens of thousands of Australians unemployed as stores shut their doors.
Around 10,000 members of staff will be sent home without pay, Myer bosses confirmed.
In a statement, they said the decision was made to protect the health of staff, customers and the ‘broader community’.
The closure will be for an initial period of four weeks, leading up to April 27, but may go on longer.
All Myer stores across Australia will be closed for at least a month due to the coronavirus pandemic
Dozens of people are seen queuing – very close together – outside a Centrelink in Melbourne on March 24, with many people having lost their jobs
‘As team members will not be working they will not be paid during this period of imposed closure,’ the statement read.
‘Full time and part time members have greater flexibility to access their annual leave and long service entitlements in addition to government assistance measures.’
It said it was ‘fully supportive’ of the government’s social distancing measures, including people staying at home as much as possible.
Global health experts said that people staying home and keeping isolated is the best way to curb the spread of the virus, which has infected more than 3,000 Australians.
It comes soon after Australia’s biggest hairdressing chain, Just Cuts, announced it would also close its doors.
Bunnings will operate limited hours, and all restaurants – including the likes of McDonald’s – are only operating as a takeaway.
Australia’s borders were last week closed to foreigners, with only returning locals able to come into the country by plane (pictured are returned travellers arriving at Sydney Airport on Friday)
There have been 13 deaths from coronavirus in Australia, with 3,168 cases recorded nationwide
But the measures will hit the economy hard, leaving many desperate for work as staff are laid off on mass.
Westpac, Australia’s second biggest bank, fears the national jobless rate will more than double by June, from 5.1 per cent to 11.1 per cent.
This would see 814,000 people lose their jobs, as unemployment soared to the highest level since December 1992.
Westpac is also forecasting an economic contraction in the March, June and September quarters, which would mark the first technical recession in 29 years.
General Pants is closing all stores until at least April 22 due to the coronavirus fallout
Smiggle is also owned by Solomon Lew’s Premier Investments which announced the shut down
This downturn would be even more severe than the global financial crisis of a decade ago.
General Pants, Smiggle, and Peter Alexander have also temporarily closed due to the coronavirus fallout.
The brands are owned by tycoon Solomon Lew’s Premier Investments, which announced a shutdown of Australian stores from Thursday.
Around 9,000 of the company’s staff around the world will be stood down without pay until at least April 22.
The group’s bosses will be working from home without pay.
Announcing its own closure on Friday night, bosses at Just Cuts said they could ‘no longer wait for the National Cabinet to do the right thing’ and close salons, with both staff and clients at increasing risk from coronavirus.
The Australian government has come under increasing pressure to force a further shutdown of the country to help stop the spread of the disease.
Just Cuts CEO Denis McFadden said the current COVID-19 restrictions were ‘impossible to maintain’ and that there was a ‘physical risk and mental toll on hairdressers and clients’.
In a damning statement, he accused the government of leaving the public at risk of infection and said they were ‘putting people’s lives on the line’.