The Penguins plan to put a four-month unpaid leave of absence into effect for an unspecified number of employees June 1.
A release from the team said the move is a result of the coronavirus pandemic, which prompted the NHL to suspend operations March 12. It was not announced whether the program will remain in effect if the league resumes play before next season. Workers included in the program will receive full health benefits from the team and will remain employees of it. The team also created a fund to assist employees who experience economic hardships.
“These decisions are extremely difficult, but they are necessary for us to endure this crisis, and to be able to resume our position as one of the best teams in sports whenever hockey returns,” Penguins president and CEO David Morehouse said in a statement released by the team. “My hope is that hockey will resume in the relatively near future, and that we will be back operating with an increased staff.”
Morehouse will take a 50 percent cut in pay, while coaches and other senior executives will have their salaries reduced by 25 percent.
Morehouse announced the program to staffers in a video conference and characterized the move as "“the most difficult thing I have ever had to do in my professional career.”
Nonetheless, Morehouse indicated that making the move, however unpleasant, was a fiscal necessity for the franchise.
“With the continued uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, and its growing impact on our business, I have made the very painful decision to reduce our operations to help us weather this unprecedented health and financial crisis,” he said.
