Haas becomes fifth F1 team to furlough staff, drivers take pay cut

Haas has placed the majority of its UK-based staff on furlough with both drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen agreeing to pay cuts.

The US team, which has a factory based in Banbury, has opted for the UK government scheme which covers 80% of salaries for staff put into furlough up to £2,500 per month which came into action from April 1.

Key F1 personnel are continuing to work on reduced salaries, while Grosjean and Magnussen are believed to have also agreed to a pay cut during this period. Haas also has personnel based in the United States and Italy but it remains unclear if any action will be taken regarding their positions.

Haas follows McLaren, Williams, Racing Point and Renault as the fifth UK-based team to furlough staff, leaving only Mercedes and Red Bull as teams yet to opt for the UK government scheme. F1’s management company has also put a number of staff into furlough.

The move comes during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic which has delayed the start of the 2020 F1 season, which provisionally is set to get underway on June 28 at the French Grand Prix. F1 organisers are assessing its options to reshuffle the race calendar, including racing behind closed doors and running double races, but will wait until the COVID-19 crisis eases before laying out firm plans.

F1 has extended its ‘summer’ shutdown by an extra two weeks to make the closure five weeks in total spread across March, April and May which applies to both F1 teams and all power unit manufacturers.