Exclusive:Sheffield Wednesday late payment latest with possible revenue revealed
Employees across all departments at Sheffield Wednesday have been paid their remaining wages for September two weeks on from their scheduled payday, The Star understands.
Correspondence sent on behalf of the club last week told employees at all levels of the club to expect their outstanding salary payments no later than Tuesday. September was the fifth month in seven that saw Dejphon Chansiri’s crisis club fail to satisfy its financial obligations to its workforce on time, with players left unpaid and non-football staff paid just £1,000 of their expected wages.
The Star understands from multiple sources that the club were due to receive an EFL basic award payment in the middle of this month, which is likely to have covered some if not all of the delayed payments to employees. Non-football employees waiting on the remainder of their wages were made whole on Tuesday morning, with players paid around lunchtime.
The Owls are under EFL registration embargo with an unprecedented six concurrent breaches of regulations publicly listed on the authority’s website. The payment of players is expected to lift one of those breaches, though Wednesday would still remain under embargo given the outstanding debts owed to HMRC, to other clubs and to further football creditors, as well as further listed breaches around future funding.
Pressure has risen on Chansiri to correct serious ongoing concerns around the payment of employees after The Star revealed a steep rise in the number of staff who have unionised. The next scheduled payday at the club is on October 31.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said last week: “Unite will do everything in its power, industrially and legally, to ensure these workers get their wages. Dejphon Chansiri has millions at his disposal, these workers do not – his behaviour is disgusting. He needs to pay his staff and sell this well-loved club and community asset to a buyer who can run it properly as a matter of urgency.”