PETALING JAYA (13 April 2020) – The Professional Footballers Association of Malaysia (PFAM) have come up with two strong conditions if they are to accept a proposed pay cut in the now-suspended Malaysian League due to coronavirus (COVID-19).
Top of their demand is that teams that are owing players’ salaries will have to settle the dues first to ensure that players’ rights are protected.
Secondly, PFAM also wants the team management to have direct negotiations with the players on an individual basis as they (the players) have different salary scales with their respective teams.
Previously, PFAM disagreed with the proposed pay cut suggestion for the players as it feared the team management may use COVID-19 as an excuse not to pay the players, especially those teams who were still in arrears.
World football governing body FIFA have encouraged clubs and players to accept ‘restructuring’ of salaries and all parties to reach a consensus on the matter. It cannot be a unilateral decision.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino made it clear that ‘health comes first’ and no match, no competition as no league is worth risking a single human life with nearly all leagues in the world currently suspended.
And because of this suspension, some clubs have deducted a certain percentage of the players’ salaries without due consultations.
The Malaysian League has been suspended since 16 March – two days before the Malaysian government’s Movement Control Order (MCO) came into force.
