700 SkyCity jobs to go

AUCKLAND: SkyCity Entertainment Group is looking to axe a further 700 jobs due to impact of Covid19, on top of the 200 it announced last month.

While it is poised to reopen under Level 2, chief executive Graeme Stephens said the landscape had fundamentally changed.

‘‘Weaker economies, lower personal disposable income, changed entertainment habits, restrictions on mass gatherings and physical distancing requirements as well as longterm travel restrictions will result in SkyCity reopening as a smaller, domesticallyfocused business,’’ he said.

In early April, the casino operator announced it was laying off 200 salaried employees and would lay off another 700 hourlyrate or waged staff if the outlook did not improve.

At the time, SkyCity said the closure was costing around $90 million in lost revenue each month and that labour costs alone were $20 million a month.

Yesterday, the company said ‘‘we need to ensure our business is best prepared to operate in the new environment. These difficult actions will help to create a business that is sustainable in the medium and long term and one which can continue to support the thousands of jobs that will still remain.’’

Earlier this month, SkyCity said it expected to reopen its New Zealand properties in a staged manner with reduced operating hours, initially based on expected customer demand as the country moves to Alert Level 2.

SkyCity will now start consultation on a proposal to reduce the number of staff by about 700. — BusinessDesk