An indication of netball’s bright future was given on Wednesday when a landmark pay deal was announced that will see players in next year’s inaugural all-Australian competition share a total wage pool of $5.4m.
Netball Australia said that each club will have up to $675,000 to spend on 10 contracted players for the new season, which features three new franchises and starts in February 2017.
The minimum salary will be $27,375 – more than double the previous $13,250 per player in the now defunct ANZ Championship, the trans-Tasman league that split at the conclusion of this past season.
To put that into context, women playing in the AFL’s new league next year will have a minimum wage of $5,000 while in cricket, if a player features in both the women’s Twenty20 and one-day domestic leagues, the benchmark is $18,000. There is no minimum wage set for footballers playing in the W-League.
“Today’s announcement represents a giant step in our collective aspiration to achieve full-time professionalism for all of our athletes,” said Netball Australia’s deputy chief executive, Marne Fechner, at a press conference in Melbourne.
The agreement has been worked on since a five-year broadcast deal with the Nine Network and Telstra was announced in May, with Fechner heavily involved in negotiations with Australian Netball Players’ Association and the eight teams to play in the competition.
“We wanted to set the benchmark for women’s sport, and we absolutely believe that we have achieved this with the new CPA [collective playing agreement],” said Fechner.
As part of the new deal, all players will be handed 12-month part-time contracts, averaging 20 hours per week, but with the hours of 10am to 4pm protected, to ensure players have the opportunity for additional work or study.
Players who fall pregnant or get injured will be covered financially, with the agreement ensuring 100% income protection on all earnings for up to two years while a parental care policy will also be implemented for players with young children, and up to $1,500 will be given to each player in private health insurance contributions per year.
For Bianca Chatfield, the Melbourne Vixens captain and Australian Netball Players’ Association spokesperson, the new agreement was a big step forwards for the sport.
“This has been a journey over many years between the athletes and the sport. Whilst we are not yet fully professional, the collaboration and collective will of all parties mean this will not be far away,” she said.
“Our ambition throughout this whole process has been to achieve that perfect balance between semi-professionalism, with the best possible conditions for our athletes.
“The athletes are excited that netball has committed to invest a greater proportion of its revenue than any other sport (male or female) into its athletes, truly recognising their contribution to growing the game.”
The name of the new league remains unknown, as does the of identity of a sponsor to replace the banking giants, ANZ, who were affiliated with the trans-Tasman competition.
