Some Club Staff Salaries Late/Embargo Chat - now resolved (for now)

[RHB]

I'm not, for one second, defending the Club here, but do we now know that staff are still unpaid? Previously we were presented with posts seemingly confirming non payment of wages but I've not seen anything more.

 

[harveyoe]

I'm not, for one second, defending the Club here, but do we now know that staff are still unpaid? Previously we were presented with posts seemingly confirming non payment of wages but I've not seen anything more.

The more recent posts on here have been about a meeting, due to take place next week, of a group of the club's sponsors. The purpose of the meeting being for them to discuss what action, if any, they feel they should take about the issue of late payment of wages for some staff.

I think this meeting would have been arranged as a result of the late payment of May wages.

I'm not sure that anyone is suggesting that it has happened again with the June wages. Hopefully we can take the news of the recent additions to playing and non playing staff as evidence that June wages would have been paid in full and on time.

 

[Jim90]

Wages are still owed for June 2 weeks late at the moment and been told to expect the same again for Julys

 

[Smiffy]

Wages are still owed for June 2 weeks late at the moment and been told to expect the same again for Julys

Thanks Jim for the update. Do you happen to know roughly how many people are directly impacted by this?...not that it really matters whether its 1 or 100, either way it's unacceptable.

 

[RHB]

Thanks Jim for the update. What a shambles. Do you happen to know roughly how many people are directly impacted by this?

So presumably no signs of funds being released to the Club even though work has started on training pitches. Come on Southend United, what's the recovery plan to put this stuff right?

 

[londonblue]

The more recent posts on here have been about a meeting, due to take place next week, of a group of the club's sponsors. The purpose of the meeting being for them to discuss what action, if any, they feel they should take about the issue of late payment of wages for some staff.

I think this meeting would have been arranged as a result of the late payment of May wages.

I'm not sure that anyone is suggesting that it has happened again with the June wages. Hopefully we can take the news of the recent additions to playing and non playing staff as evidence that June wages would have been paid in full and on time.

Out of interest, how did the sponsors find out? I know the obvious answer is that it has been over social media, but the club haven't confirmed anything so how do the sponsors know for sure?

Also, what do the sponsors expect to achieve? Are they looking to help these people out? If not then I'm not really sure of the purpose of this meeting.

 

[harveyoe]

Wages are still owed for June 2 weeks late at the moment and been told to expect the same again for Julys

This makes the whole idea of signings on the playing side and the appointment of an academy manager distasteful , to put it very mildly.

I hope the sponsors group will be asking the club some very hard questions about their business ethics.

 

[Cricko]

It shows the separation now between RM's pipe dream and the club. It is disgusting that the new training ground is being put out there as our new beginning when the club are unable to pay staff on time. It is the club and the staff that matter most and these continuous episodes of non payments just make the whole thing suck.

 

[harveyoe]

So presumably no signs of funds being released to the Club even though work has started on training pitches. Come on Southend United, what's the recovery plan to put this stuff right?

My understanding of the situation 9probably wrong) is that the new training facilities are a necessary first step along the way to starting on the main part of the project.

Once the training facilities are ready then Boots and Laces becomes the entrance to the FF complex and work can begin in earnest.

All good stuff of course, but how or why would any of this lead to an injection of funds into the club? Who would these funds be coming from? Is there any kind of agreement about this?

 

[RHB]

Out of interest, how did the sponsors find out? I know the obvious answer is that it has been over social media, but the club haven't confirmed anything so how do the sponsors know for sure?

Also, what do the sponsors expect to achieve? Are they looking to help these people out? If not then I'm not really sure of the purpose of this meeting.

There is no real indication that the Sponsors are discussing the issue. One poster on here has alluded to it only.

 

[RHB]

My understanding of the situation 9probably wrong) is that the new training facilities are a necessary first step along the way to starting on the main part of the project.

Once the training facilities are ready then Boots and Laces becomes the entrance to the FF complex and work can begin in earnest.

All good stuff of course, but how or why would any of this lead to an injection of funds into the club? Who would these funds be coming from? Is there any kind of agreement about this?

It's believed that the Chairman has indicated that exactly that would happen when he was asked.

 

[Cricko]

It's believed that the Chairman has indicated that exactly that would happen when he was asked.

He did but is the chairman that bothered about the club staff these days, it does not seem so.

 

[harveyoe]

It's believed that the Chairman has indicated that exactly that would happen when he was asked.

If Ron has said so then that settles it. He has always been a man of his word, so I'm sure funds will be arriving any day now.

 

[Holy Joe]

It shows the separation now between RM's pipe dream and the club. It is disgusting that the new training ground is being put out there as our new beginning when the club are unable to pay staff on time. It is the club and the staff that matter most and these continuous episodes of non payments just make the whole thing suck.

If the new stadium will truly make us sustainable then I don't see anything wrong in heralding the start of the construction process - hopefully it's the beginning of the end of the off field problems

 

[Fairport]

Presuming it is the non playing staff being paid late surely RM can raise enough money from somewhere to pay these people on time. I doubt if these amounts come anywhere near tens of thousands each month in total.

 

[Ghost of C.F.]

Out of interest, how did the sponsors find out? I know the obvious answer is that it has been over social media, but the club haven't confirmed anything so how do the sponsors know for sure?

Also, what do the sponsors expect to achieve? Are they looking to help these people out? If not then I'm not really sure of the purpose of this meeting

Our expectations are quite simple . We want a decent club with a good image .

 

[londonblue]

Our expectations are quite simple . We want a decent club with a good image .

Out of interest, are you a sponsor?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they're wasting their time or anything like that, I'm genuinely interested in how they found out for a fact that this is an issue, and what their end goal is.

I'm just not sure that they can really do much about it...I hope that's not the case, but I'm not sure what their end goal is and how they intend to achieve it.

 

[Holy Joe]

Presuming it is the non playing staff being paid late surely RM can raise enough money from somewhere to pay these people on time. I doubt if these amounts come anywhere near tens of thousands each month in total.

I would've thought it could easily get into tens of thousands per month. You only need 10 employees on 24k a year and your salary bill is 20k per month, then add on national insurance and other employment costs

 

[Holy Joe]

I would've thought it could easily get into tens of thousands per month. You only need 10 employees on 24k a year and your salary bill is 20k per month, then add on national insurance and other employment costs

Just checked last accounts - bit out of date YE July 2019 - but we had an monthly average of 150 employees of which 54 were 'Establishment and ground maintenance' - the other categories being playing, training and coaching (91) and directors (5). Salaries were £5.7m per year, total employment costs £6.2m. I'd expect the playing budget to be the vast majority of this - but say 10% is admin - that's £570k per year - a little over £10k per employee (not sure if the 54 is full time equivalent or actual number including part time) - if it was more like £20k (assuming full time) then that's £1m per year - so somewhere between £45k and £90k per month.

We made pension contribution of £18k for the year for admin and support employees. If the club pays say 3% of salary into pension scheme then that implies a wage bill of £600k per year for admin and support - or £50k per month.

So yep monthly wage bill likely to be in the tens of thousands of pounds.

 

[mattytheshrimper]

If true, I really feel for the staff. Like many, especially these days, not everyone can afford to go without pay for weeks. I have all my direct debits coming out a day after my pay so I'd be screwed. Not a nice way to live wondering whether your pays going to on time or not.