Recently, the issue of unpaid wages of Guizhou, a team in the Central League, has created a huge wave on the Internet and sparked widespread concern. The team has suffered from long term salary arrears and is currently unable to even train properly, casting a shadow over the future livelihood of Guizhou. The players have made it clear that they will refuse to participate in the fourth stage of the China A League if the issue of unpaid wages is not resolved. In the face of pressure, several departments in Guizhou Province intervened to mediate, the Guizhou club's senior management made a commitment to deal with the wage arrears, and the parent company's owner, Wen Wei, personally put forward a number of solutions, including a "private order" plan to ensure that the team could continue to participate in the China A League in the future.
Earlier, Guizhou players' groups sparked heated debates on the internet when they publicly accused the club of owing wages for 14 months, while also exposing that the Guizhou club's long-term debt in first-team and overseas litigation had accumulated to more than 250 million yuan. Players returned to Guiyang at the end of the last stage of the Central League and tried to seek the club's senior management to deal with the unpaid wages, but were never contacted, while also unable to carry out their daily training in a normal environment. The players allege a series of situations that point the finger at Guizhou's parent company, Hengfeng Group.
The subsequent development of the incident has attracted much attention. The day after the players' online complaint (November 5), the players met with the club's boss Ou Yiqiang under the coordination of Guiyang government departments to negotiate a solution to the problem, but a solution satisfactory to the players was not reached at that time.
On November 7, under public pressure, Guizhou officially announced that the team would have an open training session, the management would be present and the training process would be broadcast live to the public.On November 8, the players started an open training session in the outfield of Guiyang Olympic Sports Center, which was the first time that the players had trained in their original base in the past month or so. Club chairman Wen Xiaoting and general manager Ou Yiqiang also appeared at the training site.
Wen Xiaoting said in an interview that the problems were caused by the fact that the group's main business is real estate and there were problems with the return of funds. The club will definitely pay back the money owed by the players, only that there are differences in the time point. Before there is a final conclusion, we hope that people will give patience and not to speculate too much and post negative voices. Many lawsuits have not yet reached the final stage and we are not aware of them.
The media revealed after the interview that the players said in an interview during the public training that the reason why the issue of unpaid wages was publicized was because there was a misunderstanding between the players and the investors. Through this public training, senior appearances and statements, it can be seen that the Guizhou team players and the club in the issue of unpaid wages temporarily reached a settlement.
Guizhou team's training has now returned to normal, the players' mentality gradually calmed down after the public training, and Hengfeng Group Chairman Wen Wei has personally put forward a promotion plan to completely solve the problem of salary arrears. Players who are owed salary have collectively hired lawyers to deal with the matter, and from the 10th, players with different degrees of salary arrears will get the corresponding treatment program, which may include the program of offsetting the debt with goods.
The fourth stage of the 2021 season of the Central League was originally scheduled to start on November 17, but due to the impact of the epidemic, the game may face postponement. Even if the fourth phase of the game is postponed for a week and restarted, there is not enough time left for HFG to deal with the unpaid wages. However, the players said they could see sincerity and hope as long as the issue of clearing salary arrears is put on the agenda and acted upon. In this regard, Wen Xiaoting emphasized in an interview with the media, "No matter what problems arise, Guizhou Hengfeng Group will definitely deal with them positively, and will do its best to solve the difficulties no matter how difficult they are. Guizhou will definitely enter the tournament to participate in the Central League."
