ARTIST Damien Hirst has been slammed for firing half his workforce days before Christmas.
The multi-millionaire slashed the headcount at his Cotswolds studios from 60 to 25.
Hirst, famous for painting spots and displaying a preserved shark, is accused of giving no warning to the mainly young employees.
One fired staffer at the Science studio warehouse in Stroud, Gloucs, told The Sun: “It was horrific.
“No one knew this was about to happen and all we could do was watch our colleagues being called in individually — and then watch them trail out in tears.
“If your name was called, you knew what was coming.”
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He appeared in the Sunday Times Rich List in 2020 with a personal wealth of £315million – split between property and art including work by Francis Bacon and Banksy.
His 18-bedroom mansion in Regent’s Park, London, is said to be worth around £50million.
But this is not the first wave of job losses at his Cotswold studio.
In 2021, he took the decision to lay off 63 staff in the wake of reportedly claiming £15m in emergency Covid loans under the terms of the government’s furlough scheme.
His agents were asked to comment.
