Wasps forced to axe jobs as cost of virus pandemic bites
THE Wasps Group has confirmed it is making redundancies after being ‘significantly impacted’ by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Coventry Telegraph understands that around 20 members of staff based at the Ricoh Arena are ‘at risk’ of being made redundant across many different departments.
When approached for a comment, the group did not confirm a figure due to the process being ‘ongoing’, with chief executive Stephen Vaughan adding that the period of consultation was ‘now drawing to a close’.
Gallagher Premiership club Wasps have not played a match for nearly five months with the majority of its office staff being furloughed since March, utilising the government’s Job Retention Scheme.
Players were also furloughed for a period of time but a return to full training last month saw them return to work – albeit with their pay cut by 25 per cent – a measure which was implemented across the 12-team top tier of English rugby.
One member of staff who has confirmed she is leaving her role is matchday marketing manager, Verity Brown. Having joined the club as a volunteer in December 2014 – the month when Wasps played their first league match at the Ricoh Arena – Verity became a full-time employee as a community manager before taking up her most recent, and final, role with the club.
She shared the news on her Twitter account, with supporters sharing their thoughts and labelling her ‘irreplaceable’.
“Sad to say that due to redundancy my time at Wasps is coming to an end,” Verity said via Twitter. “I have loved
every minute of my time there and am truly grateful for the opportunity to have worked there. Now is the time for my next adventure.”
Wasps are not alone in the top flight of English rugby in having to make job cuts in the wake of the global pandemic.
It was reported in June that the Premiership’s most decorated club with 10 league titles, Leicester Tigers, could be cutting at least 20 jobs after losing an estimated £5.1m in revenue.
And the sport’s governing body in England, the Rugby Football Union, is cutting 139 roles to combat projected losses of £107m.
Vaughan explained the measures were being undertaken ‘reluctantly’.
He said in a statement: “We are continuing with our ongoing efforts to ensure the wider business can continue to thrive in the long-term, and as a result, are undergoing a restructure of our non-playing departments.
“Like thousands of other businesses, we have been significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, and, as such, have been constantly reviewing every part of the organisation to minimise costs during this unprecedented period.
“This restructure is part of a wider piece of work to protect our long-term interests and as such, we have reluctantly entered into a period of consultation with members of non-playing staff, a process which is now drawing to a close. We have had to make these extremely difficult commercial decisions in order to enable the business to weather this storm and bounce back stronger in the future.”
The Coventry Telegraph reported in March that, for the half year ending December 31, 2019, Wasps Holdings Limited reported a loss of £4.99m. Wasps have not played a game since that story was published, and while the Gallagher Premiership is set to restart next weekend, the matches will be played behind closed doors.