RSC to begin redundancy talks as 2020 reopening ruled out

The Royal Shakespeare Company has confirmed it will not reopen its theatres for full productions until 2021, as it announces that redundancy consultations will soon get underway.

The company has not confirmed the scale of the redundancies, only that a formal consultation process will begin in October, but also said from November it would no longer be able to pay casual workers of employees on variable-hours contracts.

"It is with great sadness that we have now reached the stage where a formal consultation process with employees must take place to safeguard the long-term future of the company. We had hoped that things would have become more positive by now, but this has not been the case," a joint statement from artistic director Gregory Doran and executive director Catherine Mallyon said.

The Stratford-upon-Avon-based company, which has a total of 750 permanent staff, has notified trade unions that a formal process will take place in October, while Doran and Mallyon added: "We have confirmed that, as there will be no work available from November 1, we will be unable to pay casual worker colleagues and those employed on variable-hours contracts. Variable-hours colleagues will remain employed and casual workers will stay on our books, for when work opportunities return in the future."

It confirmed it has 149 people on variable hours or casual contracts.

The RSC had previously announced its hope that it would be able to reopen its stages in the autumn, to remount the productions from its spring season that were cancelled earlier this year.