Up to 100 members of King Charles' staff, some of whom have worked for the new king for decades, have been given redundancy notices that indicate they might lose their jobs — as they are working around the clock to assist with preparations for Queen Elizabeth's funeral.
The staff all work for Clarence House, Charles' former residence. Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort, will be moving their offices to Buckingham Palace in the coming weeks.
The Guardian noted that the team includes staff in communications, finance, and household staff. They received these notices during the thanksgiving service for Queen Elizabeth on September 12, 2022.
The staff have stated that they had no expectation their jobs were even in jeopardy. One source told the outlet, "Everybody is absolutely livid, including private secretaries and the senior team. All the staff have been working late every night since Thursday, to be met with this. People were visibly shaken by it."
The letter was penned by aide Sir Clive Alderton, who wrote in part, "The change in role for our principals will also mean change for our household … The portfolio of work previously undertaken in this household supporting the former Prince of Wales’s personal interests, former activities and household operations will no longer be carried out, and the household … at Clarence House will be closed down."
The letter continued, "It is therefore expected that the need for the posts principally based at Clarence House, whose work supports these areas will no longer be needed."
The letter goes on to indicate that final decisions have not been made.
A spokesperson for Clarence House explained, "Following last week’s accession, the operations of the household of the former Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have ceased and, as required by law, a consultation process has begun. Our staff have given long and loyal service and, while some redundancies will be unavoidable, we are working urgently to identify alternative roles for the greatest number of staff."
The letter has been slammed by the civil service trade union, Public and Commercial Services Union. The union's general secretary described the move as "heartless" and said, "While some changes across the households were to be expected, as roles across the royal family change, the scale and speed at which this has been announced is callous in the extreme. Least of all because we do not know what staffing the incoming Prince of Wales and his family might need."
The public is also surprised by the announcement. Podiatrist Christhell Hobbs, a supporter of the monarchy, told The Guardian, "I think it’s sad. They have families they have to support. Many of them have put in many good years of service and now they’re told, ‘We don’t want you.’ You have to be human about this."
