UW Athletics eliminating 16 positions to save money due to COVID-19 pandemic
The University of Washington Athletics Department announced more cuts Thursday in order to save money due to the ongoing pressure of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The department’s “additional cost-saving measures” include eliminating 16 positions, temporary furloughs and full-time employment reductions for 35 staffers.
The eliminated positions include filled and vacation positions, according to the department.
In June UW Athletics announced department-wide furloughs for 156 professional and classified union staff and voluntary salary reductions for all contract staff.
All head coaches committed to a five percent voluntary salary reduction, while Director of Athletics Jen Cohen, Head Football Coach Jimmy Lake and Head Men’s BAsketball Coach Mike Hopkins waived all incentive payments for the upcoming year in addition to pledging major gifts to the department.
“Today is an extremely difficult day,” Cohen said. “We have remained committed to maintaining all 22 of our programs and to providing a world-class education and athletic experience for our students. In order to fulfill this commitment we are having to make some challenging personnel decisions that impact long-standing and dedicated members of our department. The current pandemic continues to have a major impact on our entire country and we are not immune. Our generous donors and fans share a passion for all of our programs on Montlake and we can’t thank them enough for how they have already stepped up to support our mission to provide holistic development opportunities for students. We recognize we have a long road ahead but are confident that this community will rally around our beloved student-athletes and programs, and their support will have a lasting impact for years to come.”
UW Athletics said they will save more money in operational expenses because of reduced or eliminated regular season and postseason travel, as well as savings due to reducing game day operating expenses.
