Gaming equipment giant Scientific Games said Monday it was furloughing an undisclosed number of employees, reducing pay and work hours for others, and slicing the salaries of executive leadership by 50%.
In a statement, company CEO Barry Cottle said he was giving up his entire salary to help the Las Vegas-based company deal with its financial impact from the nationwide casino industry shut down due to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are working around the clock to take care of our employees, customers, shareholders, and other key stakeholders in these difficult times,” Cottle said in a statement.
Scientific Games, which provides equipment to both the casino and lottery industries worldwide and is considered one of the top three gaming equipment providers, along with Aristocrat Technologies and International Game Technology, said the “cost-saving measures” would “ensure stability” for employees and protect the operations of the company.
The efforts include “workforce hour and pay reductions to preserve as many jobs as possible and furloughs for those support roles that have seen a decrease in industry work.”
At the end of 2019, Scientific Games employed approximately 9,800 persons worldwide, with approximately 4,700 employed domestically and 5,100 employed internationally, according to the company’s 10K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Cottle said Scientific Games came into 2019 “with a very strong liquidity position, including substantial capacity under our (credit) revolver.”
At the end of 2019, Scientific Games said had total liquidity of $906 million, a $467 million increase from 2018. The company had $8.6 billion of long-term debt and had raised $1.2 billion in November to pay down debt and extend maturity dates out to 2029.
“We have a diverse portfolio of assets, products, and services that uniquely position us to weather this crisis,” Cottle said.
Scientific Games also established a Hardship Relief Fund to provide short-term assistance to employees and immediate families who incur “unexpected and onerous personal, family, or living expenses as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.”
The company, Cottle, and several other senior executives will make contributions to the fund.
Scientific Games is 40% owned by billionaire Ronald Perelman, the company’s chairman.
Shares of Scientific Games have fallen roughly 88% since the middle of February. The stock closed Monday at $8.89 on the Nasdaq, up 55 cents of 6.59%.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
