Premier League players enter new pay cut talks with coronavirus charity fund set to launch
Club-specific wage deals will be worked through, with the goodwill grant from footballers due to launch soon
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Pay cuts and salary deferrals are set to be discussed on a club-by-club basis for Premier League players, who are close to finalising a coronavirus charity fund.
Discussions over a blanket wage deal broke down on Saturday during a conference call that involved around 70 people, with Kevin De Bruyne, Troy Deeney and Mark Noble putting forward the questions and concerns of their colleagues.
Top-flight footballers rejected the Premier League’s suggestion of a standard 30% salary cut or deferral over a 12-month period due to their varying financial and contractual circumstances.
It was also calculated that over £200 million in tax contributions would be lost to government-funded services like the NHS.
The players will now negotiate with their clubs on the basis of its needs to assist with cash flow. The Professional Footballers’ Association is providing assistance and protection over conditions of the repayment of deferred salaries.
There has been regular dialogue in a WhatsApp group consisting of all the captains as well as one containing the PFA delegates from each team.
Beyond navigating a change to their income, they have been talking through the goodwill fund, proposed by Liverpool skipper Jordan Henderson last week.
Private donations from the players will aid NHS charities, non-playing staff across the division, clubs and their employees throughout the pyramid, foodbanks as well as other community initiatives.
The fund will be run by the PFA, who have pledged £1m towards it with chief executive Gordon Taylor adding a further £500,000.
Other senior members of the union will make “substantial contributions.”
Despite being a continuous target for government officials, Premier League players have shown extensive willingness to help during the Covid-19 crisis.
From Marcus Rashford ensuring children in Manchester still have access to free meals while schools are shut, to Wilfried Zaha offering the use of 50 properties to NHS staff at zero cost, there has been no shortage of generous individual acts.
Footballers have felt unfairly scapegoated and have been frustrated by the quick decision of clubs to furlough non-playing staff under the Coronavirus Job Retention scheme without first trying to work through alternatives.
Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Bournemouth and Norwich have turned to the government’s policy, with Liverpool reversing their decision to do the same after widespread criticism.
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