Wigan Warriors' planned pay cut revealed

Employees were sent letters late last week to outline how the remodelled pay structure would work.

League Express today reported the cuts that all Super League clubs are asking their staff to take.

Many are taking a sliding scale approach - with Wigan, Hull KR and Toronto making the biggest cuts.

Wigan, like other clubs, have made the most of the furloughing scheme for most of their employees, meaning the government pays 80 per cent of salaries up to £2,500. All employers have the option of 'topping up' that amount from their own funds, which is where their wage model comes into play.

All of Wigan's employees are set to take a 20 per cent reduction on wages up to £37,500.

Any earnings above that will be cut by 50 per cent.

To illustrate that impact, a player on a salary of £120,000 would ordinarily take home £10,000 a month before tax and other deductions.

Under this proposal, that would be reduced to £6,834, before deductions.

League Express has broken down each club's proposal but Huddersfield, Wakefield and Hull FC are planning a 35 per cent cut on earnings above £37,500, while Leeds and Warrington are making no reductions up to a certain point before introducing a sliding scale.

Salford, St Helens and Catalans will pay April salaries in full but could bring in reductions for May.

It is thought many clubs have asked for the cuts to remain in place until the end of the year, though they will review their position in June.

There is uncertainty about when the season may resume while Super League bosses are still waiting to discover if Sky Sports will pay their next scheduled installment during the shutdown. The RFL has also applied for a government grant, believed to be an eight-figure amount.

Former Great Britain prop Garreth Carvell, who leads the players' union arm of the GMB, has been involved in the negotiations.

Any reductions would not change the players' salary cap value, meaning the cuts would not give clubs any more space under the £2m wage ceiling to sign more players, even at a later stage.

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