(Image: The Telegraph)
Working for your local football club might just
be a dream job for many people. Having first-hand experience and knowledge of
how it runs at an operational level gives a feeling of real involvement in its
development and success. A priceless opportunity, you might say?
Indeed, a
large percentage of clubs across England remain existent because of the efforts
of volunteer workers. Only those who work for the club on a full-time basis are
generally given any sort of salary, such as directors and chairmen. Even then, these
are usually voluntary positions until you reach the higher levels of the
non-league.
Into the
professional game, there is a requirement for greater numbers of staff for
match days and other events. With bigger crowds comes more stewards,
refreshment kiosk staff, security and cleaners etc. These are all positions
that demand payment of some kind, as the people that fill them will do so for a
living.
If the game is
so reliant upon its staff that make clubs run smoothly, you would assume that
they are well looked after. But can those people afford to feed, clothe and
house themselves? And with so much money in the sport – particularly at the
higher levels – should pay even be a concern for fringe staff whatsoever?
Fair Pay for Fair Work
You may have
heard recent reports revolving around the working arrangements of people making
up the lower levels of football clubs being referred to as “zero hour”
contracts.
This type of
agreement means that clubs, as well as other businesses, can employ staff on
the understanding that they will not be guaranteed a set amount of hours. This
is something used by football clubs in particular because of its ‘seasonal’
nature, i.e. one or two fixtures per week, with a long break in the summer time
(save for a couple of friendly matches).
In the case of
higher-level stewards, for example, gone are the days when clubs could simply
pluck people off of the street to sit in front of the crowd in a high-vis. Each
and every steward and crowd control staff member is professionally trained to
not only deal with problems, but to recognise potential problems early.
This is something
that came in after the tragedy at Hillsborough and the implementation of the
Football Licensing Authority’s Guide to
Safety at Sports Grounds – otherwise known as ‘The Green Guide’. Premier
League clubs will have approximately one steward for every 300 spectators,
meaning that a ground like Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium will require anything up
to 250 stewards for every match. They will be responsible for anything from
safety checks of barriers and gates, to administering emergency first aid.
Stewards pay has been something of a
closely guarded secret at the top level, but the average figure for the top 10
clubs equates to around £8.00 an hour. This has now come in for analysis and
scrutiny, with the ‘living wage’ being more frequently mentioned. The ‘Green
Guide’ states that the responsibility held by employees such as stewards should
have equal pay for equal work – purely to reflect that responsibility.
Demand for a ‘living wage’
In December
last year, Chelsea became the first Premier League club to adopt the ‘living
wage’ for its staff of £9.15 per hour. That is the figure for clubs inside
London, with the rate for those outside of the capital being £7.85 set by the
Living Wage Foundation.
The term does
exactly what it says; it is the number considered to be the basic minimum amount
required to cover living expenses. Chelsea’s chairman Bruce Buck stated that
the move was an indicator of the club’s “commitment to ensuring that all our employees receive a fair rate of pay for their hard work
and dedication”.
For a club of its size, turning over
£320m in 2013/14, commentators would likely feel that this move is the least it
could do. Its most recent annual player wage bill was just over £190m. The club has also signed a new
shirt deal for next season with
Yokahama Rubber for £200m
over five years.
So they’ll surely have some spare change laying
around for the bar staff and the cleaners?
