Whitbread, which owns Premier Inn and Beefeater, has warned that 6,000 staff could lose their jobs.
The company blamed the cuts on a slump in hotel guest numbers since lockdown.
It comes as the government’s furlough scheme, which still pays 27,000 Whitbread staff, ends next month.
Whitbread said hotel stays in August had halved compared with last year, while diner numbers fell by more than a third, though said it had been helped by the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
The firm could also be affected by new rules forcing restaurants to shut at 22:00. From Thursday, hospitality venues will have to close earlier to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Whitbread said it expected demand to remain lower well into 2021 and possibly 2022.
Read more: Whitbread to cut 6,000 jobs as hotel demand slumps – just as Gates-owned buffoon Johnson is about to make it even worse
