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Premiership clubs pay staff 'poverty wages' as players earn millions
Paul Waugh, Deputy Political Editor14 Aug 2008
London's Premier League football clubs are paying their backroom staff "poverty wages" of as little as £200 a week, a report claimed today.
In contrast to the millions being earned by star players, Chelsea, Spurs, Arsenal, West Ham and Fulham are all paying barely the minimum wage of £5.25 an hour to cleaners, kitchen porters, cashiers and bar staff, the IPPR think-tank report found.
On the eve of the new season, the IPPR and the Fair Pay Network antipoverty campaign released research claiming that the problem of low pay was "endemic" at top-flight clubs across the country - and at all five Premier League London clubs.
Chelsea yesterday made Frank Lampard the league's highest ever paid player with a £39.2 million contract. The deal puts him on £151,000 a week - equivalent to £3,775 an hour.
But while Chelsea pays its players more than £150 million a year, some of its staff are paid the basic minimum wage, the IPPR report found. The Barclays-Premier League is the most lucrative in the world. The combined revenues of its 20 clubs stood at about £1.9 billion last season and they spent £600 million on players.
Revenues are set to rise dramatically owing to ticket price increases and new broadcasting rights.
Mayor of London Boris Johnson today called on the clubs to start payingthe London Living Wage of £7.45 an hour - set by City Hall at £2 an hour more than the national minimum wage because the capital's housing costs are so high.
Sports minister Gerry Sutcliffe is joining forces with Premier League sponsor Barclays - which itself is committed to "fair pay" for all its staff - to campaign throughout the 2008-9 season for all clubs to improve their wage rates for those working off the pitch. Mr Sutcliffe said: "There is a huge amount of money in football and it is only fair that everyone working for a Premier League club should reap the benefits."
The issue is to be highlighted in Parliament as the Government tries to persuade the clubs to pay more.
The IPPR survey of all 20 Premier League clubs found some paying staff not in cash but in match tickets. One club outside London paid a £25 fee for five hours work for a steward on match days, which is technically illegal under minimum wage legislation.
A spokesman for Tottenham said: "We review our staff salaries, bonuses and benefits annually and believe we are not only fair but also competitive, as demonstrated by our high staff retention rates. Clearly there are numerous third party suppliers who are reviewed on renewal of their contracts and we shall continue to do this."
Chelsea said that it did not comment publicly on surveys of any kind. West Ham, Arsenal and Fulham were not available for comment.
Reader views (9)
I think the argument is that these institutions wield a lot of power and influence and that if they take the lead on these issues then other organisations will follow suit.
It is clear that football clubs play a central role in the lives of many people and are the centre of many communities. An improvement in the way they conducted business would have a tremendous knock on effect in in the areas which they operate.
A recent article in ethical consumer magazine rated football teams on an ethical basis and part of the results were based on this report by the Fair Play network. This article made the point that although people are not going to switch allegiances based on what an NGO says they could pressure their club to improve the lives of their staff.
Ultimately it is the directors, who may or may not be over paid, who have to make the decisions on how ethical it is to employ agency staff or their own staff who live on poverty level wages. It is clearly as much of an issue for football clubs as it is for all business but for things to improve for the thousands of people living in poverty across the UK someone has to take the lead so why not football clubs?
- Tim, London, 30/10/2008 14:48
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Top Premiership players do not appreciate money as they earn far too much. Let them do cleaning for a few weeks and earn £5 an hour and then see how they feel.
- Brian Curtis, London, 30/10/2008 13:48
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Pretty much all large companies pay the people at lower end of their staffing requirements peanuts. Why single out football clubs?
- Paul, London, 30/10/2008 13:48
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Jaw-droppingly shocking!
- Dada, London, 30/10/2008 13:48
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I agree with Boris, pay those at the bottom a fairer wage. Also make ALL clubs pay for all the policing costs associated with there businesses, why should the Council Tax payer pick up the cost via the police precept and effectively subsidise them.
Glad Frank is in it for the silverware, I guess that means he will give some of his own gold to the back room boys and girls.
- Robert May, SouthWest France, 30/10/2008 13:48
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Footballers earn incredible amounts of money, far too much in my opinion.
Shame on those who exploit so willingly, people who struggle to make ends meet.
True fans of football should boycott their beloved game for the sake of thousands who are being used as slaves. To make more money for an insatiable greed.
As the followers of football are being "ripped off ", at every game they attend.
It burns a big hole in ones pocket to attend a game. Many do not attend as much as they would like to.
Fair play to all those behind the scene and fair pay.
Take them away, what you be left with?....
Think about it supporters.
- Tina Donne, norwich uk, 30/10/2008 13:48
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If sweeping out a room is worth £5.25 an hour, what difference does it make how much money the other people make who use that room? You're doing the same job, whether it's for Arsenal or a one man and his dog operation, so who should one cleaner get paid less than the other?
- John Rimmer, London, 30/10/2008 13:48
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I love football, but I am sick and tired of seeing footballers flouncing their wealth. No footballer is worth 35 million for 5 years wages.. Frank is good - but where does it stop... When football hits the wall and the public aren't filling the stadiums... Lets see what the clubs will do then.
- M Stanley, Essex, UK, 30/10/2008 13:48
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NHS 'manager's earn ridiculous amounts of money, yet the front-line people including clinical and nursing staff, cleaning staff, porters, and allied health professionals earn nowhere near what a 'Project Manager' or 'HR business manager (whatever that is!)'. The kind of people who do these overpaid and overrated jobs would baulk at the thought of clearing up vomit or dealing with the victim of a serious accident, yet they're the ones swilling around the NHS trough. Now, it seems, the murky world of premiership football has the same problems. If there were no 'backroom staff', the games couldn't go ahead. So why are the clubs treating these people as if they're from another life source?
- Joannie, London, England, 30/10/2008 13:48
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