Boris Johnson is under pressure to adopt sweeping measures to protect wages today.
Union leaders and the SNP set out demands for a “people’s bailout” including guaranteed income.
Gary Smith, of the GMB union in Scotland, repeated calls to copy Scandinavian nations where as much as 90 per cent of income is being protected.
“We have a short window of opportunity to get this right so that when we come through this crisis, which we will, we have resilience in our economy and we can break the chains of austerity,” he said.
The Record exposed fears earlier this week that jobs are being lost in droves, with unions braced for “economic Armageddon”.
UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak will announced later today a rescue package which must protect millions of jobs.
The SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford is holding talks with the prime minister.
Blackford wants to use the tax and welfare system to put thousands of pounds into people’s pockets, possibly through a “universal basic income”.
He also called for higher statutory sick pay, pay retention scheme covering at least 75 per cent of salaries for three months, rescue for hospitality firms and a boost universal credit benefits.
Blackford said: "There is now a very real risk that the UK is heading for a devastating economic crisis, which could see unemployment go through the roof and levels of poverty soar.
"It is absolutely imperative that the UK government takes immediate action by introducing a wide-ranging multi-billion financial package for people today - to save jobs and protect incomes.
"The SNP has put forward a five-point plan, which would put cash in people's pockets now by introducing a guaranteed income for everyone, increasing Statutory Sick Pay, raising Universal Credit and Child Benefit payments, and providing support for businesses to prevent redundancies.
”The scale of the UK government's response must meet the unprecedented nature of this emergency. Thousands of people are already losing their jobs and livelihoods. Millions face the same threat. The UK government must deliver the immediate support that is needed without further delay."
