Good morning!

Today I’ll be live tweeting my personal experience of working as a bar assistant on the day of #PubsOpening. If you are going back to work in a pub re-opening on (or returning as a customer) pls share your experiences at #PandimicPints.

@KandidaPurnell

The pub I’m working in is not named for anonymity reasons. I have been given consent by the publican to do this. It is part of an ongoing 8-month ethnography. No other staff member of customer will be referred to directly without consent.

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So today is the day #pubsreopen! The pub I’m working in will be opening its door at 12.30. I’ve already done 2 hours of setting-up and cleaning as we have been operating as a takeaway service for 6 weeks.

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I live above the pub. I’m having my breakfast now & printing off numerous documents I created for the publican in regards to COVID-19 Guidance on Social Distancing & Hygiene, Trace & Trace, risk assessment, entry signs, table bookings.

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Yesterday evening I wasn’t meant to be working in the takeaway draught beer service we had, but we became so busy I needed to do a shift. Many customers spoke to me about how much they were looking forward to #pubsreopening. There was a buzz.

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This is one of the signs I produced. They will be displayed throughout the pub. The risk assessment had to consider the potential of increased violence and aggression as the public are not necessarily used to be being told what to do in a pub environment.

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Yes, I know #Corona is a virus not a disease but the signs have already been printed and displayed.

I help to convene the pubs social media. I’ve just had to reply to a number of enquiries about booking tables for today. The pub isn’t taking anymore bookings & is now operating on a 1st come 1st serve basis for available seating.

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We also still have a number of people phoning the pub’s landline & the publican’s personal mobile phone to try to make bookings.

It looks like it’s going to be a very busy day.

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The takeaway service of draught pints has brought a new clientele to the pub – a lot of passing trade people who are now regulars. I haven’t seen many of the former regulars since the pubs closed. Wondering how #reopeningpubs will affect who comes back & who stays?
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We've been open for 5 minutes and haven't had 1 customer yet

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First customers are entering. It’s a booking for a birthday party of 6 people from 2 household (all men). They want to watch the march. We have to tell them that we can turn the volume up too far.

Publican just informed me that I may set in the bar to observe, but that I’m not to work as he wants me ‘fresh’ for tonight when my shift starts as we’re going to be very busy.

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Publican also just informed me that myself & other staff are not to attempt to enforce the regulations ourselves, but tell him & he will do it. It’s for our own safety. He has been working in pubs for 35 years & in his own words ‘some of the roughest you’ll find’.

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Should give some background about the pub. It’s a small Irish pub situated in 1 of the affluent areas of London, but within a borough with a high economic divide. 10 minutes away there are mansions, 10 minutes in the other direction there is a large council estate.
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More customers enter. Again, young male in their 20s

Publican is doing table service.

Someone is also buying a beer from the takeaway service.

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More customers enter, it’s a couple (man & women) is their 50s. Publican shows them the choice of available seating. He then gets them to fill out their contact details for track & trace.

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I’m very glad to see all entering customers using the hand sanitiser at the door.

Each table also has hand sanitiser on it.

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It’s such a strange feeling not to have stools at the bar

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It’s gone quiet. Going to stop for half-an-hour and get some lunch.

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Back from lunch. No customers entered while I was away, but a group of 6 people have just come in (5-man 1 woman) 30 to 40ish. They were directed over to a table & their contact details collected. One of them has just done a fist pump movement when ordering.

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Also, glad to see customers observing the only 2 people at a time in the toilet rule. I do wonder what will happen when it gets busier & more alcohol is consumed?

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So far, the majority of customers are using contactless payments.

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There’s been a number of regulars (formers ones that also supported the takeaway service) passing the window & saying they’re looking forward to seeing us this evening.

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Just to give some more context about the pub. It’s a wet-led pub meaning that it focuses on selling drink, not food. It doesn’t do food at all. It also has no outdoor space or beer garden.

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One of our former regulars has come in (male 40ish). He’s drinking on his own. He was here on the last day the pub was open 20th March. We'd not seen him since then.

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A group of 6 that came in had just been in another pub near us. It’s an upmarket gastro pub with a now 2-hour limited policy. They said even though the pub was nearly empty they were still asked to leave. They were very annoyed. Our pub has no time limit.

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A group of 3 have just come in (2 men, 1 woman) 40ish with a dog. New barmaid asked me if that was okay? I was very pleased to inform her that our pub has a dog friendly policy. Drinks were served including a bowl of water for the dog.

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It’s getting busy. Publican was on his break; barmaid was serving & a group of customers came in & went toilet without signing in! We’ve got their details now, but there is no seating left so they are using the takeaway pint service until one becomes available.

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This has made us realised that we’re only going to be allowed to let customers use toilets as we have to collect everyone who enters the pub contact details & we won’t have time to do this for those just wanting to use toilets.

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I assume this will be a similar policy in most pubs. It’s a really accessibility issue.

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It’s 3.30pm & all available seating is now occupied. This pub never uses to open until 4pm before we started doing the takeaway service. I wonder whether this is because we opened earlier now or whether it’s because it’s the first day pubs are open? Maybe both?

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Our takeaway draught beer service is still very popular especially since many customers can’t come in as we’ve reached our agreed capacity (third of normal capacity).

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There is a large amount of conspiracy theories about #coronavirus being discussed in the pub!

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Also, everyone (majority) of customers that had that really bad cold back in March & April believes they definitely had #Corona.

Without a reliable anti-body testing system, we’ll never really know.

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As it approaches 5pm is getting busy. Quite a lot of jokey elbow greetings followed by hugs. No way this can be policed by bar staff. The signs are there.

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The group of 6 males that entered at 1pm are getting a little rowdy. Publican has had to tell them to keep it down (one of the regularly is not to raise voices as it can spread the virus). They’ve been warned that they will have to leave if they don’t calm it down.

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*regulations