In addition to implementing pay cuts, the NFL also has begun to furlough employees. The process began on Friday.
Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports that NFL Network and NFL Films employees were included in the league’s furlough program, and that furloughed employees learned of the decision Friday.
Via Marchand, the NFL declined to identify the number of individuals affected by the furloughs.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, it’s believed that the furloughs at NFL Network and NFL Films impacted office personnel and support staff. Contractual employees presumably are insulated from mandatory pay cuts and furloughs, unless their contracts allow it. Most on-air talent have contracts, and it’s unknown whether any of them have been asked to take voluntary pay cuts.
The league is tightening its belt at a time when it’s unclear whether the belt even needs to be tightened. With free agency and the draft proceeding as planned — and with the draft generating record ratings at dramatically lower costs — it’s difficult to pinpoint specific financial losses absorbed to date by the league.
That said, losses likely will be coming, if games proceed without fans present. If anything, the current effort to cut costs represents an acknowledgement that revenue will indeed be down eventually, even if it currently isn’t.