Roger Goodell can suck it.
The commish made a grandstanding move of retro-actively “cutting” his 2008 salary and “freezing” his salary for this year.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will take a pay freeze in 2009 and cut his total compensation for 2008 by 20%-25%, USA TODAY has learned.
As part of a league-wide salary freeze for all NFL employees, Goodell is freezing his current annual compensation of $11 million for upcoming fiscal 2009 even though his contract entitles him to an automatic pay raise, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed Thursday.
The commissioner, 49, will also take a 20%-25% cut in his salary and bonuses for fiscal 2008, which ends March 31. Goodell is freezing his salary for 2009 and taking the pay cut for 2008 as part of a league drive to cut costs in the current economic recession.
Meanwhile, 150 working stiffs for the NFL got pink slipped back in the fall.
“These are difficult and painful steps,” Goodell said in a memo back in the fall, “but they are necessary in the current economic environment. . . . I would like to be able to report that we are immune to the troubles around us, but we are not.”
Now, some will say: “Czabe, how can you rip a guy who volunteered to give up part of his own salary?”
Easy. It’s all grandstanding.
If you can’t see what the league is doing, you are blind.
The NFL just didn’t want to be the only major corporation sitting out the fun firing times! This league makes money hand over greedy fist. They needed that savings on 150 people like I needed another McDonald’s sausage bagel.
Even still, let’s say they really needed the (high estimate) $10 million from these sacrificial lambs.
Goodell should have used his own salary haircut to save some of those jobs. And then, he could have mandated that player fines for stupid shit (gun charges, end zone celebrations gone wild) stop going to “charity” and instead to an employee fund.
Or maybe cut out absurd pre-game fireworks in broad daylight at stadiums.
I too think that companies throw away too much money at empty suit CEOs who aren’t worth a squat. But if you have a salary or contract, and are happily employed by your company, then you shouldn’t be embarrassed by it, or voluntarily cut it.
Unless you are doing it for a truly noble cause. Like, say, letting 150 people in your “family” pay the rent for a few months. Otherwise, take the money you have earned and stop pretending your are Mother Theresa.
All this means a work stoppage in the NFL is more and more likely in 2010 as the league and Goodell pull out the tricks to claim poverty.
Czabe: I love the fact that you call things like you see them. That said, I can't agree with your take on Goodell. I am not naive enough to believe there is no PR agenda, but turning down +/- $2 million in compensation, can't be dismissed as simply "grandstanding". 20% is 20%... Ask anybody in the workforce making 100k if they would consider cutting their compensation by 20k, a token gesture or grandstanding. No way...
ReplyDeleteFrom a business model, the 150 NFL jobs may have been cut to streamline corporate structure. Every good business looks for greater efficiency in their operation,in good times and bad times, especially the wildy successful ones like the NFL. Back to your statement that, if happily employed by your company, you shouldn't be embarrassed or voluntarily take a pay cut... I think that, as Americans, we want to follow people who lead by example. I wish that more ceo's, bank presidents, etc. had the stones to voluntarily take a pay cut. Then we may not be in the financial position we are in as a nation. Save the "mother theresa" reference for the millionaire who gets up at the podium and announces to the world that they are donating some token amount like 10k to charity. Keep up the good work, Donkey!
-Adam from Phoenix