26/05/2020
NEWS STORY
The McLaren Group is to lay-off 25% of its workforce, around 1,200 people, in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, around 70 of the redundancies coming from the F1 team.
The Woking-based company, whose team was the first F1 team to take advantage of the taxpayer-funded furlough scheme, confirmed the move, citing the impending F1 budget cap and the pandemic, following reports in the British media.
"We deeply regret the impact that this restructure will have on all our people," said the group's executive chairman, Paul Walsh, "but especially those whose jobs may be affected.
"It is a course of action we have worked hard to avoid, having already undertaken dramatic cost-saving measures across all areas of the business. But we now have no other choice but to reduce the size of our workforce.
"This is undoubtedly a challenging time for our company, and particularly our people, but we plan to emerge as an efficient, sustainable business with a clear course for returning to growth."
Referring to the company's F1 team he said: "McLaren Racing has been a proponent of the introduction in 2021 of the new Formula 1 budget cap which will create a sustainable financial basis for the teams and lead to a more competitive sport.
"While this will have a significant impact on the shape and size of our F1 team, we will now begin to take the necessary measures to be ready to run at the cap from 2021 onwards, in order to challenge again for race wins and championships in the future."
The move follows the recent revelation that the Woking-based company is seeking to borrow £275m against its collection of historic race cars and its factory, having been turned down by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy for a loan of £150m.