Former Hearts defender Alan McLaren believes Jambos players are stuck in a quandary after cost-cutting was proposed at Tynecastle.
Players and staff were asked on Wednesday to take a 50 per cent wage cut amid financial fears.
The Scottish Professional Football League was suspended last Friday “until further notice” along with all non-league and grassroots football due to the coronavirus crisis and it could be several months before matches are played again.
Hearts owner Ann Budge claimed the Ladbrokes Premiership’s bottom club will lose out on around £1million of income due to the suspension of their league fixtures and their Scottish Cup semi-final before she announced steps to stave off redundancies which allow unwilling staff and players the “option of contract termination”.
McLaren, who played for Hearts between 1987 and 1994, believes the measures are “probably best for the club” but offered a player’s perspective.
He told Sky Sports News: “I’d be struggling. There will be players out of contract and it might be September until they can gain employment elsewhere.
“There’s no point taking termination of contract – no-one is looking to sign out-of-contract players when there’s no football. It’s tough but I think everyone has got to sit down, look at their own situation and see if they are able to take this massive cut.”
Former Rangers and Scotland defender McLaren believes Budge did not take the decision lightly and that Hearts could be the first of several clubs to take financial steps to ensure survival amid the uncertainty.
He said: “First of all I thought she’d hit the panic button a bit early but looking over the facts maybe the reserves aren’t exactly what she thought they’d need to actually survive over the next two or three months.
“It appears she’s now trying to get ahead of the curve and it’s not nice. Fifty per cent is a lot of money.
“There will be people at the club who spend 50 or 60 per cent, maybe even 80 per cent of their wage each month. These are drastic times and call for drastic measures.
“Ann is obviously looking long-term. She’s brought the club back from the brink of extinction once and she’s now looking long-term again thinking they will have to survive until September without any revenue.
“She’s taking a hard stance but I think it’s probably best for the club. Of course they would (have been planning to cut costs anyway). They would have to have been doing that as they are sitting bottom of the league with only eight games to turn it around.
“Yeah, she would definitely have been doing her sums and will be aware of the finances and what the club have in reserve. You have to take your hat off to her. This will not be a decision she will have taken lightly.
“Unfortunately I think it could be a domino effect. I think a lot of other clubs could go down this route too.”
