Ever since INEOS bought a minority stake at Manchester United, it has axed hundreds of employees in massive cost-cutting operations. As per The Guardian, Sir Jim Ratcliffe led INEOS is about to axe another 200 employees including long-serving head of team operations Jackie Kay who has been at the club since 1995. Sir Jim Ratcliffe believes these shake up at the club’s backroom operations are necessary with the club going through massive financial issues. It is believed by many insiders that United would have gone bankrupt if Sir Jim Ratcliffe hadn’t injected much needed cash into the club.
The latest axing move comes after Manchester United reportedly lost almost £300m over the past three years over various footballing and backroom operations, a figure that Ratcliffe and his team deem “unsustainable.” The decision in the light of the Profit and Sustainability Rules of the Premier League seems harsh but appears to be necessary. Sir Jim Ratcliffe believes that these cuts are essential to steer the club back to profitability and every amount saved will be reinvested back into the first team.
This isn’t the first time cost-cutting measures have rattled the corridors at Old Trafford. Last summer, Ratcliffe made headlines by dismissing around 250 employees, a decision that was expected to save roughly £45m per year. Other controversial measures have included ending Sir Alex Ferguson’s lucrative ambassadorial role and scrapping longstanding perks like free travel for staff attending finals. Even the club’s London office in Kensington is under threat of closure, though officials insist a presence will be maintained in the capital for global marketing purposes.
Critics of the current ownership argue that the relentless focus on cost-cutting has left morale in tatters among long-serving employees. Staff believe morale is already on the floor after last year’s job losses adding that further redundancies could deal another heavy blow. Veteran team operations head Jackie Kay, who served United for nearly three decades, is among the recent high-profile casualties of this restructuring drive.
Even though the criticism has been severe over the redundancy issue, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been resolute in his approach over how he is going to save every pound possible to make United a financially sound club. He believes a leaner, financially sound club can weather the challenges of modern football while investing back to improve first team quality. While many fans and former staff members have expressed concern over the potential cost, there is also a belief also that these drastic steps might be the only way to tackle the financial issue grappling the club. Of course, INEOS can learn a thing or two while handling transfers to save even more, as United has been historically bad in the market with their transfers for a long time now.