Donald Trump has defended his company’s decision to temporarily lay off more than 150 workers at his private Mar-a-Lago club.
The president’s Florida retreat is furloughing 153 workers following a similiar move affecting 560 workers at the Trump National Doral Miami resort. Mr Trump said rules enforcing social distancing were to blame.
Speaking at the White House, he said: “You can’t have many hundreds of employees standing around doing nothing. There’s no customer.”
The federal government’s economic relief bill specifically bars Mr Trump’s businesses from receiving emergency loans and other benefits meant to help companies retain workers during the crisis.
The affected workers include bartenders, cooks, dishwashers, drivers and housekeepers.
