Nets say they’ll continue to pay arena workers
The Nets will continue to take care of their own.
That’s what team owner Joe Tsai said in a statement on Saturday, where he detailed how the Barclays Center would continue to pay their hourly employees for the duration of the would-be Nets season, even if the season does not return after being suspended due to a coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s essential,” a Barclays Center employee told The Daily News. “For most, this is the only job they have. One thing that doesn’t change is bills. So this will keep everyone afloat for the rest of the season.”
The Nets have pledged to pay hourly employees their normal wages through the end of May, which would account for games through at least the third round of the NBA playoffs. The Nets entered the league suspension as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference, facing a potential first-round playoff match-up against either the Bucks, Raptors or Celtics. They would’ve been heavy underdogs.
“While all of us are negatively affected by suspension of the NBA season and a state-wide ban on events with 500 people or more, we are especially aware of the difficulties faced by our hourly employees. When games and events are cancelled or postponed, work stops and so do paychecks,” the statement reads. “With the aim of helping Barclays Center staff get through this difficult time, we commit to provide relief to hourly employees for the paychecks they would have earned if Brooklyn Nets’ regular season games and non-Nets events at Barclays Center were to continue as scheduled.
“It is our goal to alleviate the hit to household cash flow from work stoppage for people impacted so they can pay for necessary expenses, such as rent, utilities, food and daily necessities. We want to let our Barclays Center staff know that nobody is left behind and we are in this together.”
A Barclays Center source, however, expressed some skepticism to The Daily News. They explained that the news of pay through the suspended season was announced via social media before it was relayed to the hourly workers it would be affecting.
“I think that it’s good that they’re paying for NBA and non-NBA events,” the source said. “However, the fact that we found out via social media makes it feel as if it’s a publicity stunt to keep up with the other organizations doing the same.
“We’ve yet to receive an email confirming this.”