With the casino industry being one of the hardest hit by the global outbreak of the coronavirus, casino operators and virtually everyone else tied to the market is being forced to find ways to scrimp and save until things can return to normal. Some companies, such as William Hill, found their leaders opting to completely forego compensation in order to help provide some relief to their employees. Others took a more self-serving route and opted to take shares in lieu of salary. Las Vegas-based gaming company Scientific Games (SG) has now announced how its top executives are responding to the COVID-19 disaster, with the company brass falling into the first camp.
CEO Barry Cottle is voluntarily giving up 100% of his salary, while others in upper leadership positions have agreed to take a 50% cut in compensation. While there is still going to be a need to reduce workforce hours, and possibly the level of employees for a little while, the company stands to release millions of dollars in the short-term to help ease the pressure felt by the global pandemic.
In addition, SG will also establish a Hardship Relief Fund for its employees and their families. This fund is designed to help cover any unexpected costs as operations scale back because of coronavirus, and will receive immediate support from SG’s revenue, as well as from Cottle and other senior executives.
The CEO explains in the announcement, “Like many others, our industry is facing unprecedented challenges from the widespread impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. We are working around the clock to take care of our employees, customers, shareholders and other key stakeholders in these difficult times, while providing uninterrupted products and services to those customers who continue to operate. Thankfully, we came into this year with a very strong liquidity position, including substantial capacity under our revolver, and also refinanced our debt, extended our major maturities and lowered our interest expense. We have a diverse portfolio of assets, product and services that uniquely position us to weather this crisis.”
As one of the top gaming development companies in the world, SG has been hit hard by COVID-19. Its stock was sitting at $30.24 On February 12, but has since plummeted to a low of $4.09 on March 18 – a drop of almost 85%. It has seen a little bit of a recovery since then, inching upward to close at $8.89 yesterday. That came following an intraday drop from $8.45 to $7.42 ahead of the rebound.
Cottle adds, “We are taking a variety of actions to help ensure that we meet the demands of this outbreak and are ready when the industry begins to recover. I am confident that the measures we are taking now will prepare us to come out of the crisis even stronger than before. And, I have never been prouder to lead a team where everyone is stepping up to help each other, our partners and our Company.”
