A RESTAURANT manager was sacked after hiring staff without the owner's authority, a businessman alleges.

A spokesman from Panama Jacks in Angel Place, Worcester claims that as well as hiring staff without authority, the manager in question also spent a lot of money on "irresponsible purchases", while further complications delayed the opening of the business.

“We made the wrong appointment of a general manager, he caused us a lot of problems," the spokesman said. “He was very highly referenced, but there is certainly a lesson learned. We had a number of problems. We encountered significant delays.”

Panama Jacks, which opened in October, was originally intended to be a bar but then had to be re-branded as a restaurant due to licensing issues.

“Our initial approach was for it to be a bar but then it came to light that there was a licensing monitorial," the spokesman said. "We had to change the format of the business and restart. We lost the best part of eight weeks because of that and that is where a lot of confusion came in.”

“We were moving the position of the bar, when we applied for that it came to light that the licensing had changed.”

Four people say they were let down after being offered jobs at the American-style restaurant, claiming they had been kept waiting for over a month before being told the positions were no longer available. The say they received apologies from the business by text message.

Kirsty Lewis, 28 and from Malvern, said she was offered a job on September 14 and was called in for several meetings. She claims that, believing she had a job that would be starting soon, she turned down other job offers. Miss Lewis said: “I had to rely on my partners income and borrow money off family. Rent and bills have been a huge struggle. I have no phone due to not being able to pay bills. Had we have been told earlier by Panama Jacks, we could have all found another job.”

Shona Mcgreig, 42, said she was also offered a role at Panama Jacks and so handed in her notice at her previous job, only to then receive a text to say that she was not going to be taken on. Miss Mcgreig said: “ I have had to go on Universal Credit and have had to go to a foodbank three times. I had to sell my car to buy a cheaper car as I need car for a new job in community care, and the money leftover I used to pay back people I had borrowed from. I’m in arrears with my rent.”

The Panama Jacks spokesman said 18 staff were hired and are currently working at the restaurant. He said the manager responsible for the issues has been sacked.