City OTB Chairman Meyer “Sandy” Fruscher sent a letter to state Racing and Wagering Board head John Sabini yesterday, indicating the layoffs approved as part of an eleventh-hour plan to keep the bankrupt gambling operation open are underway.

“On Thursday and Friday, we will be terminating 35 non-union management positions which will immediately reduce our payroll by $2 million annually,” Fruscher wrote. “While regrettable, this action is a necessary step to operate our business more efficiently and effectively as we look toward a new future.”

Fruscher ominously notes that a “much more significant downsizing of our entire workforce lies ahead,” but the OTB is awaiting legislative approval for an early-retirement incentive program and a joint effort with the union that represents most of the operation’s workforce in accordance with a MOU.

“This is just the first of many steps in our plan that NYC OTB will take to reduce expenses and more detailed information will be included in the documents we send to the Board next week,” Fruscher wrote. “We look forward to working with the Board and the entire New York racing industry to develop a long-term solution for the serious problems facing our industry.”

The emergency plan to prevent the layoff of 1,300 city OTB employees was reached on April 18 after state lawmakers departed Albany without managing to reach a bailout deal.

RWB Letter 04 22

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