With the sports world on hold due to a pandemic, what are teams doing to help assist their workers?

Fans across the country were at a loss for words when the NBA made their decision to postpone the 2019-20 season on March 11. Although there was previous speculation about how the league would continue playing without fans during the horrifying coronavirus pandemic after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive that week, the league was forced to put their play on hold for the safety of their talent. 

Every Northern American sports league followed suit, with the NHL and MLS postponing play the next day. MLB postponed Spring Training action and was eventually forced to push back Opening Day, leaving a big question mark on if this baseball season will take place at all. The Master’s Tournament was postponed, as was the Olympics. This was the first time that either illustrious event was postponed, although both were canceled during World War II.

Of course, this inevitable lockdown throughout both the country and world has created insurmountable economic deficiencies. The people who have been hit the hardest from this pandemic are lower to middle-class citizens, with a record 3.3 million American citizens filing for unemployment benefits according to the Washington Post. In the sports world, this trend has continued.

It is easy to get lost in the hierarchy of sport, especially when considering finances. Following the news, people questioned how athletes, who make millions upon millions of dollars to begin with, would get paid. How would executives be able to maintain a league with the economy in shambles? What about the lower market teams, would they have a harder time staying afloat?

But what gets lost in this conversation are the employees hired by these organizations, particularly stadium workers such as vendors and parking assistants, who are reliant on that income. If anyone was hit hardest by the sports world being placed on pause, it is these individuals. And now, organizations are seeking ways to bounce over these monetary circumstances.

The world oftentimes presents a David versus Goliath dynamic, especially when considering the evil reality of wealth. The wealthy, what is often recognized as the one percent, tower over every other demographic to an extent that doesn’t seem fathomable. But with this giant conglomerate of wealth also comes the potential of great efforts.

One of the first sports figures to comment on the impact of the coronavirus was Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Despite his shock of the league’s announcement, he was quick to announce the need to implement a system that would allow these employees to be paid fairly and efficiently. 

I reached out to the folks at the arena and our folks at the Mavs to find out what it would cost to support, financially support, people who aren’t going to be able to come to work,” said Cuban in a press conference following the team’s victory over the Nuggets. “They get paid by the hour, and this was their source of income. So, we’ll do some things there.”

This decision started a chain reaction, and owners, along with athletes, began to donate some of their earnings with the intention of helping to provide these workers with some sort of income.

Venues such as the FedExForum in Memphis, the United Center in Chicago, the Madison Square Garden in New York and others have informed their workers that they will receive normal pay for each regular-season game that they were scheduled to work before the hiatus.

Owners all over the NBA, including Gayle Benson of the New Orleans Pelicans, Dan Devos of the Orlando Magic and Micky Arison of the Miami Heat are donating millions of dollars in order to start funds that seek to not only aid their workers but also their communities.

Athletes such as Gobert, defending MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, Sixers center Joel Embiid, Cavalier Kevin Love, Piston Blake Griffin, even rookie sensation Zion Williamson have donated to help game staff maintain their salary. Dallas Stars’ defenseman John Klingberg got creative with his donation, providing a signed Winter Classic jersey that could be auctioned, with all the proceeds going to COVID-19 relief.

Baseball made a splash on March 17 when MLB announced that all 30 teams would provide $1 million for ballpark employees that were affected by the pandemic.

This crisis that has essentially stopped the world in its tracks has seen very little optimism around it. It has taken so many lives, and it has affected everyone’s livelihood in some capacity. And somehow, there is a level of dissatisfaction when considering the lack of empathy from the wealthiest people in the world. We don’t hear the masses praising the likes of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos or Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffet (two gentlemen who combined are worth over $181 billion dollars). Instead, it’s silence.

However, it appears that the sports business world is maintaining some level of humanity. 

The ethics behind sport are absorbed by the team and maintaining a singular focus to meet the ultimate goal. In this case, sports is continuing to showcase that mentality, but in a far more complex and important way. In this case, the goal is to keep hard-working American citizens safe from one of the most frightening times the country has ever seen. Thanks to a team effort, they have accomplished this goal to some degree. However, there is still a long way to go.