DOZENS of Tate workers facing the sack protested outside one of the organisation’s London galleries on Monday as it opened its doors for the first time in four months. 

Tate Enterprise, the commercial arm of the Tate, is preparing to axe over 300 jobs in its retail, catering and publishing services at its four galleries in London, Liverpool and St Ives, according to union PCS. 

Members described the restructuring plans as a “kick in the teeth” as they greeted visitors lining up outside Tate Modern with chants of “save our jobs.” 

Protesters held placards reading “we’re part of the culture sector too” and “value all culture workers.”

PCS claims those affected by the job cuts are largely low-paid workers and the “most diverse” sections of the workforce.

One unnamed worker at the protest said: “After four years of working at Tate, to be told you are being made redundant in the middle of a pandemic and a possible economic downturn is both heart-breaking and terrifying.” 

PCS is calling on the Tate to shoulder its commercial arm with bailout money received from the government.

The union claims that the galleries have received £7 million of the government’s £1.57 billion investment into the culture sector. 

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “It is staggering that after receiving a £7m grant from the government, Tate has decided to treat loyal staff, who support some of our country’s most important cultural sites, with redundancy.”

The Tate said that it has allocated £5m from its reserves to support Tate Enterprises. 

Directors of Tate Enterprises Hamish Anderson and Carmel Allen said that a collective consultation across the company would affect all levels of staff.