The coronavirus outbreak has forced nearly every major sports league to suspend operations or cancel games, and it’s possible that we won’t see arenas full of fans for an extended period of time as the number of confirmed cases continues to rapidly rise across the world. The outbreak will affect us all in different ways, but many arena workers are facing dire financial challenges with events cancelled for the near future.
Fortunately, some organizations – though not nearly enough – and generous players have stepped up to help arena workers feel secure during this uncertain time. Immediately after the NBA announced that the season will be suspended, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban announced that he was working on a program to help assist arena workers who were suddenly out of a job. Several other teams across different sports have since committed to paying arena workers, and some players have pledged thousands to help the people who assist in making their games possible.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Cleveland’s Kevin Love, and Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky have all pledged to donate $100,000, and on Friday, 19-year-old Pelicans superstar Zion Williamson announced that he will cover the salaries of all workers at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans for the next month.
“The people of New Orleans have been incredibly welcoming and supportive since I was Drafted by the Pels last June, and some of the most special people I have met are those who work at smoothie King Center.
These are the folks who make our games possible, creating the perfect environment for our fans and everyone involved in the organization. Unfortunately, many of them are still recovering from long term challenges created by Katrina, and now face the economic impact of the postponement of games because of the virus.
My mother has always set an example for me about being respectful for others and being grateful for what we have, and so today I am pledging to cover the salaries for all of those Smoothie King Center workers for the next 30 days. This is a small way for me to express my support and appreciation for these wonderful people who have been so great to me and my teammates and hopefully we can all join together to relieve some of the stress and hardship caused by this national health crisis.”
These acts of generosity are truly heartwarming and should be commended – but it isn’t the responsibility of players to make sure affected employees don’t lose their livelihood. Many fans tweeted various professional athletes this week, proposing that they donate money to help arena workers – a solution proposed with good intentions, no doubt, but one that also lets billionaire owners off the hook. The Milwaukee Bucks, for example, encouraged more of their players to step up and donate, instead of just committing to covering salaries. Most NBA teams have not yet announced any plan to assist arena workers at all.
Following the donation of $100,000 by @Giannis_An34 to the impacted Fiserv Forum staff, the Bucks organization is proud to match all Bucks player donations to part-time arena workers. pic.twitter.com/BV02TGua0z
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) March 13, 2020
Rockets are in so 10 NBA teams are covering the wages of their hourly employees through at least March
20 are not or are being bailed out by a player pic.twitter.com/TTBRPewRIM
— Tyler Conway (@jtylerconway) March 13, 2020
Per Forbes, all but two NBA teams posted an operating income north of $20 million in 2018-19, and most teams were well above that mark. Furthermore, this shouldn’t even be a tough decision for teams, as it’s a good PR move that shows each organization cares about its community. It’s not on players, most of whom have a net worth that’s a tiny fraction of their team owner, to do the right thing.
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