Manchester United will NOT put its staff on leave during the coronavirus sports outage, according to reports.
Liverpool, a fierce rival, has become the last club to face a public reaction after elected Premier League champions confirmed that they have placed their non-player workers in the government’s retention program.
On Saturday, the Reds became the fifth Premier League club with staff on leave, joining Tottenham, Newcastle, Bournemouth and Newcastle.
Meanwhile, Manchester City is the only top flight club to date to confirm that it will NOT be using the government leave program.
And it is said that United is ready to follow suit and resist the urge to use taxpayer dollars to help pay their staff during this crisis.
According to Daily Mail reports, the Old Trafford club will tell around 900 non-player staff that they will be paid 100%.
It is said that United will inform its staff of the decision this week and is considering ways for its staff to offer their services in the local community to help those in need during the pandemic while they are not working.
Noisy Manchester City neighbors announced on Sunday that they would honor the wages of their non-game out of their own pockets.
But Liverpool’s historic rivals have come under heavy criticism after announcing that they have put “some employees” on leave, which represents more than half of their non-playing workforce.
The Reds promised that these workers would receive full wages. About 200 employees have been put on temporary leave and Liverpool will use the government plan to cover 80% of their salary, while supplementing the remaining 20% themselves.
But the move sparked a mass scandal in the soccer world, with club legend Jamie Carragher and former midfielder Didi Hamann among those who criticized the club.
Meanwhile, Tony Cascarino, talkSPORT fan and lifelong Liverpool fan, did not hesitate to react to Sunday’s news about the Sports Breakfast.
“To me, that is wrong – the club was not built on that,” said the former striker.
“They can easily continue to pay their staff, they don’t have to go to government yet. This is not a hopeless situation.
“I find it really frustrating that a club of this size has even attempted to do so. The numbers do not add up.
“I find their decision – and how fast it was – on the verge of madness.”