Hibs furlough 'majority of staff' to preserve jobs

Hibs have announced they are to furlough the majority of their staff including all of their players, as the club takes steps to mitigate the damage caused by the football shutdown.

The Easter Road club, who took an early decision to have all staff work from home, has cut staffing to a bare minimum of senior management, ticket office staff and members of the communications team, until the effects of the coronavirus crisis ease and a date for is set for football to resume.

Employees have agreed to defer salaries by between 20% and 50% during the shut down.

All football in Scotland was stopped in mid-March as society worked to stem the spread of the virus and as yet there is no set return date, with many expecting clubs to be without matchday revenue until July at the earliest.

Hibs chief executive Leeanne Dempster said: “Our main aims through this crisis are to look after our people and our community, and to protect this club for the future. We have spoken with staff and our players. They have all been superbly supportive and committed through this whole issue, and we have agreed that we should furlough.

“Senior staff and players have also agreed to defer a significant percentage of their income. This will help the club manage its finances through this difficult period. The Chairman has said that the club will repay any shortfall in earnings over an agreed period once things return to normal.

“The club hopes that taking this action early will ease some of the cashflow pressure we are facing now and in the coming months, allowing us to see this national crisis out without losing any of our people and keeping the club in a good place to compete when football does return to Easter Road.

“We have also seen a magnificent response from supporters, and we are grateful to all of those who have felt able to buy a season ticket and offer this vital support. If you feel able to commit, please do. We are also very aware that many will not feel able to commit at this time for very understandable reasons. To all our fans, we will be as flexible as we can to help you get your season ticket, and we are looking forward to seeing you all back at Easter Road.

“Finally, we can’t repeat it enough. We are thinking of you, and we hope you are following advice and keeping yourselves and your loves ones safe and well.”