Bangladesh Cricket Board official said that they are unlikely to go for pay cuts of their staff and cricketers due to the coronavirus pandemic, reports Cricfrenzy.
Some cricket boards of other nations might take this route during this time of crisis like England Cricket Board (ECB) announced a financial aid package worth 61 million pounds to help support all levels of cricket in England but at the same time they have declared that they are taking measures to consult with staff on reducing all employees' salaries for two months from April 1.
Proposed cuts will vary according to the employee's job grade, ranging from 25% to 10%. The Executive Management Team and Board will receive a salary reduction of 20%, while Chief Executive Officer Tom Harrison has volunteered a 25% reduction.
Some staff will also be asked to consent to furloughing through the Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, where after the ECB will supplement to ensure staff receive hundred percent of their reduced salary. The ECB will additionally freeze all recruitment in 2020, with critical roles only being replaced when an employee leaves the business.
ECB are not seeking pay cuts from England's centrally contracted men's or women's players but move in that direction is not unlikely if the crisis lingers for more than the expected timeframe.
During a press conference on Wednesday when asked whether he would be open to a pay cut, Eoin Morgan replied that he is ready for anything during this time of crisis.
“I'm extremely willing to help where I know it's going to make a difference. In the uncertain times at the moment, where nobody seems to have any answers of the actual impact it will have on international cricket, English cricket, I'm open to absolutely everything. I'm very aware how serious the situation is. I'm very aware that everybody will be affected within the game. I'm open to helping where and when I can.”
Tom Harrison, the ECB chief executive, wrote to Tony Irish, his counterpart at the Professional Cricketers' Association (the PCA; the players' union who negotiate pay on behalf of centrally contracted players), on March 29 to broach the subject. In the letter, Harrison revealed that he personally would be taking a 25% pay cut “for at least three months” as the ECB “confronted it as the biggest challenge the sport has known in the modern era.’
When asked whether BCB is thinking in this line, BCB’s chief executive officer Nizamuddin Chowdhury said that they are not going for pay cuts and insisted that rather they are thinking of how to support the cricketers and other stakeholders during this time of crisis.
“We are not thinking in this line (going for pay cuts) at the moment. We are confident that we don’t have to take such steps (pay cut) right now as we can survive for quite some time and we hope by that time everything will return to normalcy,” said BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury.
“We are aware that it’s a very tricky time as everything looks uncertain but we are also aware about our financial strength and hope it will be enough to let us through this crisis,” he said. “We are working out on how we can be stay beside the cricketers and our other employees at this time of crisis,” he said.
BCB announced that they have decided to give financial aid to the grounds men and scorers in the ongoing coronavirus pandemic after they decided to give financial relief to non-contracted cricketers and contracted cricketers of the national women’s wing too.