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While OSEG has stepped up, so far there’s silence from the Ottawa Senators, whose final regular-season NHL game was set to be April 4 against Pittsburgh.

OSEG announced its initiative Sunday. Payroll will be processed this coming week for shifts worked through March 13. Workers will be paid for scheduled shifts that have been cancelled, whether those shifts were for hockey games or any other events, up to March 27 (for the April 3 payday).

“I make the decision and (let the ownership group) know what I’ve done,” said OSEG chief executive Mark Goudie. “Doing things quick is important right now. People are worried about their situations. But I know my parameters. I know what (the ownership group’s) values are. I’m pretty comfortable making decisions that reflect what they would want me to do.

“We have hourly employees here on a daily basis. Even on days we don’t have events, we have part-time casual labour employees at TD Place. This just feels like the right decision right now.

“Over our first six years, I think we’ve done enough right things that people think that OSEG cares about its employees, its fans and its guests. Coming out of this unfortunate world epidemic, I want people to know that we do care.”

In a best-case scenario, if the 67’s games that have been postponed do get played, the part-time workers will also get paid for working those game nights.

“We would pay them again,” said Goudie. “What we’re paying now is done and dusted and committed. If we ask them to come in on another night, we will pay them for that separately.”