Yum! Brands Steps Up Coronavirus Relief

By Maitane Sardon

Yum! Brands Inc. said Wednesday that it is implementing several measures to provide relief to its employees, its franchise owners and the communities where it operates amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The owner of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell said it is launching a medical relief fund to provide financial support for restaurant employees that work at its stores and its franchise-owned stores. The fund will cover workers that are diagnosed with Covid-19 or that need to look after someone that has been diagnosed with the virus.

In its KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and the Habit Burger Grill restaurants in the U.S., Yum! Brands said it will pay employees who are required to stay at home--or who work at a restaurant that is closed--for their scheduled hours during their time away from work.

The company said it will try to help franchise business owners in the U.S. and elsewhere by allowing grace periods for near-term payments. In the U.S., Yum! Brands will allow its franchises to defer capital obligations for remodeling and unit developments until the end of 2020.

Yum! Brands also said it is collaborating with more than 20 food banks globally and providing food to front-line health workers.

Write to Maitane Sardon at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 25, 2020 12:45 ET (16:45 GMT)

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