The impact of the coronvarius outbreak is reaching more people than anticipated, even if they don’t get the dreaded virus. After the NBA suspended its current season, Dallas Mavericks owner and billionaire Mark Cuban said he will make sure his hourly employees receive their pay, according to CNN.
“I reached out to the folks at the arena and our folks at the Mavs to find out what it would cost to support, financially support, people who aren’t going to be able to come to work,” Cuban said at a press conference. “They get paid by the hour, and this was their source of income. So, we’ll do some things there. We may ask them to go do some volunteer work in exchange, but we’ve already started the process of having a program in place. I don’t have any details to give, but it’s certainly something that’s important to me.
“It’s stunning, but we are where we are,” Cuban said. “We have to be smart in how we respond. This is people’s lives at stakes. This isn’t about basketball, this isn’t about the Mavericks. This isn’t about when do we start, do we start? Or how do we start? This is a pandemic, a global pandemic where people’s lives are at stake. I’m a lot more worried about my kids and my mom who is 82 years old–in talking to her and telling her to stay in the house–than when we play in our next game.”
In the hopes that this might indeed spread quicker than the coronavirus has, Cleveland Cavaliers star Kevin Love has also pledged to support arena workers who will not receive their income due to the NBA suspension. He posted this on his Instagram account:
“Everyone reacts differently to stressful situations. And the fear and anxiety resulting from the recent outbreak of COVID-19 can be extremely overwhelming.”
Here’s what you need to know about the virus.