Fearful Manchester United employees think a senior figure Sir Jim Ratcliffe has brought into the club is spying on them.
There is a “growing culture of fear” among United’s employees as Ratcliffe, who owns a 28.94% stake in the team, continues his harsh cost-cutting tactics. In an attempt to balance the books, Ratcliffe laid off 250 employees last August, or about 25% of United’s workforce.
The chairman and founder of the petrochemicals company INEOS, who is thought to be worth £12.59 billion, has a reputation for being brutal with both the most well-known employees and those in less well-known positions at United. Old Trafford was rocked in December by the shocking decision to fire sporting director Dan Ashworth after just five months in the position.
According to a recent shocking Telegraph report, employees saw Ashworth’s exit as evidence that nobody was safe under Ratcliffe’s rule. One source reportedly told the newspaper, “It’s like this axe is hanging over your head all the time and you’re just waiting for it to drop.”
When a specific figure is present, staff members must also be careful with their language. As part of a wave of appointments led by INEOS, the unnamed male executive has come to be seen as something of a “spy” by Ratcliffe and his right-hand man, Sir Dave Brailsford.
According to reports, employees have learned to be especially careful about their words when around the alleged spy out of concern that their remarks and criticisms might backfire.
One year has passed since Ratcliffe completed a £1.25 billion deal to buy his 27.7% stake in United, the team he grew up supporting in the nearby town of Failsworth. The 72-year-old recently invested an additional £79.3 million and raised his stake to 28.94 percent.
There are rumors that Sir Dave Brailsford and Sir Jim Ratcliffe have a “spy” in Manchester United’s staff.
According to reports, United plans to hold a staff briefing on Monday at 2:30 pm to inform its workers about the potential for additional layoffs, which would undoubtedly result in more criticism directed at Ratcliffe. Therearerumorsthatupto200additionaljobcutsarepossible.
Ratcliffe, who reports to the Glazer family, the team’s majority owners, cautioned both supporters and employees that he is willing to make difficult choices in order to restore Old Trafford to its former glory days in an interview with the fanzine United We Stand. “Nothing much is going to change if you avoid the tough choices,” he claimed.