Cycling-British cycling furlough a third of their staff due to coronavirus

British Cycling will furlough around a third of their staff in April and May due to the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the governing body's CEO Julie Harrington said on Wednesday. The outbreak brought the global sport to a near standstill and Harrington said the cancellation of cycling events registered with British Cycling will lead to a significant loss of revenue in the coming months.

Harrington said they were planning for a drop in income of around four million pounds ($4.93 million) and would furlough some staff through the British government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. "At this stage, 90 roles around a third of the workforce will be furloughed, the majority in April and some in May," Harrington said in a statement.

"We know that it may mean difficulties for some employees who are being furloughed so we have put in place measures to support them, including offering financial advice and access to learning and development tools. "Other steps we are taking to manage the impact on our revenue include a 10% pay cut in May and June for myself and members of my leadership team."

Under the scheme announced last month, employers can claim 80% of furloughed employees' monthly wages, up to 2,500 pounds ($3,085) per month. A number of major cycling events across Europe were either canceled or postponed due to the outbreak, including the Paris-Nice cycling race, Giro d'Italia, the Paris-Roubaix, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Tour de Yorkshire Race.

($1 = 0.8104 pounds)