Accor has announced a €70m fund to support employees affected by Covid-19 as it revealed that more than two thirds of its 5,000 hotels worldwide are expected to be closed within weeks due to the deepening impact of the global coronavirus lockdown.

The hotel group said the “ALL Heartist Fund” has been withdrawn from the Accor’s Board of Directors proposal for a 2019 dividend payment of 280 million euros. Chairman and CEO Sébastien Bazin will also forgo 25 per cent of his fixed salary during the crisis, and donate it to the employee fund. 

The fund will support the Group’s 300,000 employees, covering COVID-19-related hospital expenses for those who do not have social security or medical insurance. It will also assist furloughed employees suffering great financial distress and individual partners facing financial difficulty.

Separately, the group unveiled a new #ALLatHome campaign to bring digital experiences and content to Accor Live Limitless (ALL) loyalty members and guests while they are confined at home.

From rigorous fitness trainer-led workouts, exclusive DJ sets playing lively beats, and masterclass cooking tutorials presented by world-leading chefs, ALL will showcase exclusive content and live streams themed around sport, food and entertainment through Accor’s Instagram and Facebook pages.

Activities will include:

Sport: coaching with Ken Group, exclusive interviews with Marquinhos and Marco Verratti and morning routines with Paris Saint-Germain players, training routines with Double Olympic Judo Champion Teddy Riner, e-sport contest with the Paris Saint-Germain football club

Food: pastry classes with Quentin Lechat, best Parisian pastry chef in 2019, cooking classes with Pierre Sang along with many more award-winning culinary artists

Entertainment: live DJ sets, a line-up of emerging artists from ibis Music, exclusive content and playlists with Montreux Jazz Festival and many more to come