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The St. Petersburg Kennel Club, which operates as Derby Lane, will begin laying off employees Dec. 27 after Florida voters in 2018 overwhelmingly approved a proposal to halt greyhound racing by the end of this year, according to a notice filed with the state Department of Economic Opportunity.
Kennel Club Chairman and President Richard Winning advised the state the layoffs would start Dec. 27 and continue through April.
“Due to passage of Amendment 13 banning greyhound racing, St. Petersburg Kennel Club, Inc. does expect that this will result in a mass layoff affecting greater than 50 employees,” Winning wrote on Monday.
Winning said 51 employees will initially be let go, including nine dog handlers, 10 mutuel tellers, three members of a TV crew and an announcer.
Additional layoffs will continue through the first four months of 2021, including a racing secretary, racing coordinator, paddock judge and maintenance crews.
Billed as the oldest continuously operating greyhound track in the world, the kennel club on its website says live racing will continue through Dec. 31, with simulcast wagering and poker available “for many years to come.”
Nearly 70% of the 7.8 million voters in the 2018 election approved a constitutional amendment that banned greyhound racing at pari-mutuels by 2021.
9 comments
William Williams
October 22, 2020 at 11:53 pm
Too bad the voters in Florida were so easily duped by Grey2K and other FOR PROFIT ” animal rights groups. These athletes are treated better than 99% of house pets and are ALL adopted out to great homes when their racing career is over. The false ads put out by these bogus groups showed dogs being injured on track when in reality if you throw a frisbee for your dog in the back yard he is more likely to be injured than Greyhound in a race.
Shame on the greed of these groups who have taken away the livelihood of those that have worked in the industry for generations.
Fred Barton
October 23, 2020 at 3:48 pm
It didn’t have to be this way. The industry could have stood up for their workers. They could have lobbied the legislature to provide funds for education and retraining like they did in Iowa. It was always about money 5ough and those that got the money didn’t return the loyalty of those who earned it.
Kevin Lamarge
October 23, 2020 at 4:36 pm
Ms. Bondi I hope you can sleep good every night knowing you are axing Greyhound racing and affecting people’s livelihoods.
Susan Stephenson
October 28, 2020 at 1:30 pm
Grey2KUSA is NOT for profit. You can easily track them via Guidestar, ProPublica, and other independent sites. They are registered as a nonprofit and their taxes are easily accessed. If, as you claim they are making a buck off their cause, why hasn’t anyone successfully challenged them? Hmm? As a group who has been working for almost 20 years with minimal resources, they have done what is right for these beautiful animals. The momentum has grown slowly, but the writing is on the wall. Greyhound racing is dying. Australia, NZ, Ireland, China, Mexico, and a few other counties are following suit and closing tracks. The punters are not there either, so wake up and move on.
The Truth
October 29, 2020 at 2:36 am
Stop Drinking the Gry2k KOOLAID, Idiot
Fred Barton
October 29, 2020 at 7:33 am
Insulting people who disagree with you has worked so well for you so far, I understand why you would continue to do it. \satire
The Truth
October 29, 2020 at 8:14 pm
@Fred you and other gave money to two thieves that lied to greedy politicians. THE TRUTH
Fred Barton
October 30, 2020 at 6:46 am
it was almost a year ago that almost 70% of the voters in Florida said no more racing. Isn’t it time you quite beating that horse?
The Truth
October 30, 2020 at 4:43 pm
Beating that horse? Hmm… I’m surprised you used that Expression. I’m just saying that people like yourself put a lot of people of work by giving money to two Liars and greedy politicians.
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