LAS VEGAS, NV—APRIL 9, 2020—Boyd Gaming Corp. said this week it will place most of its 25,000 employees on unpaid furlough starting Saturday, a move predicated by the nearly month-long shutdown of its nationwide casino business due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Las Vegas-based Boyd, which operates 29 properties in 10 states, had said previously it was paying its full-time and part-time employees through April 10 (Friday).

However, the company said in a statement Wednesday it needed to take additional measures to mitigate the financial impact of the pandemic.

"This is by far the most difficult decision we have ever made," Boyd CEO Keith Smith said in a statement. "We care deeply about the well-being of our team members, which is why we maintained full pay and benefits through April 10. Implementing furloughs was a last resort for us, but a necessary step to protect our company, especially given the current lack of visibility regarding property re-openings."

Boyd’s executive leadership team will be taking "significant salary reductions," while the company’s board has agreed to suspend the director compensation. Also, non-furloughed members of the company’s corporate and property management teams will also take a salary cut.

The company will pay all insurance premiums for furloughed employees enrolled in Boyd’s health care plans. The payments will run through June 30 or their return to work, whichever is sooner. A limited number of essential employees will remain on payroll during the closure period.

The company was one of the first in the gaming industry to close one of its casinos in early March when its Valley Forge property was included in an order Pennsylvania’s governor that businesses in the Philadelphia area close when the virus began to spread. Two days later, Boyd’s Par-A-Dice casino in Illinois was ordered closed when state casino regulators shut down the riverboat gaming market. In addition their two racetrack casinos in Louisiana, Delta Downs and Evangeline Downs, have been closed since March.

Boyd said it was taking additional cost-containment measures, including postponing all non-essential spending; suspending all capital projects, which will be re-evaluated by the board; and suspending the company’s cash dividend program.

"As a result of these difficult but necessary actions, we are confident Boyd Gaming will have sufficient liquidity and resources to sustain itself until we are able to re-open for business," Smith said. "We will continue to carefully review our operations and expenditures during the closure period and make additional adjustments as necessary."