The pubs and restaurants group that owns Harvester, All Bar One and Toby Carvery looks set to slash jobs across the UK.
Mitchells & Butler has begun redundancy consultations with a number of staff due to the effects of coronavirus crisis, reports say.
M&B, which also owns O'Neill's, reportedly has around 1,700 pubs and restaurants and 44,000 employees but has not yet said how many job are at risk of being axed.
M&B's spokesperson also called for further government support for the hospitality sector.
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They described the move as "a difficult and regrettable decision", adding that bosses would seek to redeploy staff wherever possible.
"Our industry is operating in exceptionally challenging and uncertain circumstances, the spokesperson for the group told the BBC.
"With trading restrictions and uncertainty likely to continue for the foreseeable future, we strongly urge the government to step up the level of support it is offering to an industry which has been repeatedly singled out and taken the full brunt of restrictions."
The latest news of a threat to hospitality jobs comes the same day fresh restrictions are set to hit the industry afresh.
Boris Johnson today announced some pubs and bars in the worst-hit parts of England will be forced to shut under Tier 3 restrictions.
Only those that serve 'substantial' meals along with alcohol, like a restaurant, will be allowed to remain open in 'Very High' alert level areas.
So far, those restrictions apply to the first area to come under Tier 3 Restrictions.
Liverpool city region, including the city centre, Knowsley, the Wirral, St Helens, Sefton and Halton are included in the harsher new restrictions.
