Los Angeles Lakers teaming up with STAPLES Center tenants to pay employees
The Los Angeles Lakers and their STAPLES Center co-tenants will step up and help the arena workers impacted by the sports world coming to a halt and suspending operations.
There haven’t been many positives for the Los Angeles Lakers this week. They suffered a bad loss to the Brooklyn Nets earlier in the week and before they could snap that losing streak, the NBA suspended the season because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The NBA will be suspended 30 days before re-evaluating where things stand. The league has put some precautions in place to avoid the spread of the virus, such as players not being allowed to work out in groups and encouraging the players to stay home as long as possible.
Thus far, only two players have tested positive for the virus, both members of the Utah Jazz. Rudy Gobert was the first player to test positive, which led to the league suspending operations. Donovan Mitchell was the second player to test positive.
This is a difficult time for everyone. Fans are disappointed they cannot see their favorite teams and players on the court. The players want to play the game they love. However, the people arguably impacted the most by this stoppage are the arena workers that are on hourly wages.
With all operations ceasing, those people are going to be without wages for the foreseeable future. With the other sports leagues following suit after the NBA, people who even worked games for the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL are without work.
This has been a topic of discussion throughout social media. Some players, such as Kevin Love, Blake Griffin, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Zion Williamson, have stepped up and said they will donate money to those arena workers impacted by this shutdown.
Love is donating $100,000 of his own money to help the cause. Griffin is doing the same as Love and Williamson is covering the salaries of arena workers for the next 30 days. Giannis and the Bucks are working together, matching donations.
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Mark Cuban, almost immediately, said he and the Dallas Mavericks were working on a plan as well. The Portland Trail Blazers are working on a plan for their arena workers. The Atlanta Hawks will be taking care of their arena employees as well. The Washington Wizards are as well, through the end of the month.
Now, the Los Angeles teams are joining in as well.
The Lakers, LA Clippers and Kings are teaming up to make sure their arena workers are taken care of during this time. Kyle Goon and Mirjam Swanson of The O.C. Register shared the news.
"The Lakers, Clippers, Kings and AEG are finalizing details of a plan that would compensate the hundreds of part-time and contract workers who staff Staples Center’s biggest events. It’s a measure that could help allay concerns that the most vulnerable workers will keep a steady income during NBA, NHL and event shutdowns due to the coronavirus outbreak."
This is a great gesture and something that all teams and owners should be doing. While it is incredible to see players stepping up to help other people in need, the onus shouldn’t be falling on them.
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The billionaire owners should be the ones stepping up and helping the arena workers in need. Hopefully, this is something we see all of the organizations throughout the league follow suit and do during this tough time.