How the Matildas can get a pay rise and negotiate better pay from the FFA

The Matildas have made it through to the quarter finals of the Women’s World Cup. They are playing Japan, the reigning world champions, on June 28. To get there, the Matildas survived a draw from hell including world #2 the United States, African champions Nigeria, world #5 Sweden, and world #7 Brazil. The Matildas are no light weights, currently sitting at #10 on the FIFA World Rankings. FYI the Socceroos currently sit at #63 on the FIFA World Rankings. There has been growing public outcry at the pay disparity between our women’s national team and the men’s national team. Right now is a perfect time for the Matildas to be lobbying for better wages, as their current agreement expires on 31 July 2015. In this blog post, I compare the Matildas and Socceroos collective bargaining agreements and explain how the Matildas can achieve better conditions in their next round of collective bargaining.

Introduction to collective bargaining

Professional footballers in Australia are represented by a union/employee organisation called Professional Footballers Australia (“PFA”). The PFA represents both the Matildas and the Socceroos in collective bargaining. Quite a few players are actively involved in the PFA, and the current Matildas collective bargaining agreement was signed for the PFA by goalkeeping legend Melissa Barbieri, who is currently representing Australia at her fourth World Cup. Collective bargaining is a process governed by the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) where employers and employees negotiate a collective agreement that outlines aspects of the employment arrangement such as wages, leave, and categories of employment. The PFA represents players in negotiating collective agreements with Football Federation Australia, who engages players for Australia’s national teams. The Matildas and the Socceroos have separate collective agreements. The key provisions in the Matildas collective agreement include provisions on:

·         minimum and maximum player payments

·         medical minimum standards

·         injury payment requirements

·         distribution of prize money

·         grievance and complaint procedures

Why the current Matildas Collective Bargaining Agreement needs an overhaul

Apart from wage issues, there are a number of reasons the Matildas CBA is in need of an overhaul:

1.       Amendments to the original CBA make it difficult for players to identify what their rights are

The original CBA ran from 2010 to 2013. In 2013, instead of creating in a new CBA, the 2013 CBA was amended with a Term Sheet, running from 2013 to 2015. The original CBA continues to operate except to the extent it is inconsistent with a clause in the Term Sheet. This would be ok if all the Matildas players were lawyers and had half a day to work out which terms are displaced. This is not the reality. This form of amendment makes it extremely difficult for players to work out what their rights are. Amendment by Term Sheet may seem like the easier, more cost-effective option at the time, but it can lead to complications and legal disputes over whether a clause has been superseded or not.

2.       Three separate CBAs should be in one agreement

The Socceroos, Matildas and A-League all have separate CBAs. This does not make sense in an industrial relations environment where an employer usually negotiates one CBA or enterprise agreement for all related employees. As the Socceroos, Matildas and A-League players all undertake the same service, being to play soccer, they should all be covered by one agreement. The fact they are in separate agreements screams segregation and indicates an acceptance of different groups of players having different rights. Fortunately, the FFA and FPA have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that they will make one agreement covering the Socceroos, Matildas and A-League when the current CBAs expire on 31 July 2015.

3.       Annexures are outdated

The original CBA includes several annexures including a standard player contract. Some of the terms in the contract are very out of date and some key terms usually in an employment contract are not included.

Comparison of Matildas and Socceroos current CBAs

	Matildas	CBA reference	Socceroos	CBA reference
Minimum number of players contracted	20	2.1 (Term Sheet)	Players have strict contractual obligations to clubs. Players are employed on an Assembly basis by FFA. Clubs are provided written notice of the player’s selection for that Assembly.	6 (CBA)
Length of contract	6 months Two contract periods a year	2.2 (Term Sheet)
Notice if contract is not going to be renewed	1 month	2.2 (Term Sheet)
Minimum annual payment	$21,000 ($10,500 per 6 month contract)	3.1(a) (Term Sheet)	Socceroos are engaged on a complicated contractual basis and the pay they receive is calculated using a complicated combination of match payments, daily allowances, bonuses, prize money, and commercial payments. Most of a Socceroos earnings come from commercial payments.	7 CBA
Top up for contracted players	FFA can distribute an additional $75,000 to contracted players, but no contracted player can receive a top up of more than $14,000	3.1(c) (Term Sheet)
Match fee general1	$500	3.1(a)Term Sheet	$6,500	6.1 Term Sheet 1
Match fee	Group match $500 Round of 16 $600 Quarter Final $750 Semi Final $1,250 Finals $1,500	3.2 Term Sheet	Group $7,500 Round of 16 $8,500 Quarter Final $9,500 Semi Final $11,500 Final $17,000	6.1 Term Sheet 1
Daily fee for uncontracted players attending Assembly2	$150	3.1(b)Term Sheet	$240	7.1 Term Sheet 3
Bonuses and prize money	Paid in equal shares to relevant players	5.4 CBA	30% of gross prize money to be paid to players	5.1 Term Sheet 3
Licensing profits	Players receive in equal shares -50% of revenue from team based products -70% of revenue from player based products -50% of revenue from commemorative team produces	5.5 CBA	Similar distribution % to Matildas, but massive estimates of licensing profits, ie $1,056,000 to be distributed between players in 2013/14 FY and FFA guarantees profits ie  $700,000 for 2013/14.	3.2 Term Sheet 3
Provision of equipment	FFA will do its best to provide contracted players with Nike boots, shinguards and uniform	4.1 Term Sheet	FFA must supply all apparel and footwear	4.1(d) CBA
Provision of lounge facilities for travel	FFA will do its best to provide lounge facilities when team is travelling	4.3 Term Sheet	Travel to be business class.	4.1(c) CBA
Accommodation	No specifications		Players to be provided for single rooms at the World Cup and long tours. Accommodation to be five star.	8.1 Term Sheet 1 4.1(c) CBA

¹ This is the amount players receive for being listed on the official match sheet for a game. This fee is paid to contracted and uncontracted players.

²This is the fee uncontracted players receive when they are selected to play for the Matildas in an official match, tournament (official and invitational), training session and team meetings.

I haven’t put too much information in about the Socceroos because their payment system is quite different to the Matildas due to the Socceroos earning significant commercial payments. Socceroos are not contracted to the FFA for 6 month periods like the Matildas are. The data speaks for itself, but I would like to point out in particular:

1.       The general match fee for a Matilda is $500 V $6,500 for a Socceroo;

2.       A Socceroo is paid more to appear in a group match than a Matilda is to appear in a final. Almost seven times more.

3.       Socceroos must be provided with five star accommodation and provided with a single room each. There is no specification in the Matildas CBA about accommodation.

Why this is the opportunity the Matildas have been waiting for

The FFA and PFA have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that after the current CBAs expire on 31 July 2015, parties will negotiate a “whole of game” CBA. That is, the Matildas, Socceroos and A-League players will all be covered by one large CBA instead of having separate CBAs. This is a great opportunity for the Matildas, as their current rates of pay will appear ridiculous once directly alongside the Socceroos and A-League rates of pay. They will be able to lobby competitively for better conditions.

It is perfect timing that the Matildas have been very successful in the Womens World Cup. Their profile in Australia is growing and growing, attracting more sponsorship, which will give them more bargaining power. Some Socceroos including Tim Cahill have come forward to support better pay conditions for the Matildas. If the Matildas can get the support of more Socceroos to assist them with their lobbying efforts, they will be able to obtain better collective bargaining outcomes. The media has also jumped on board, covering the severe pay disparity between female and male soccer players.

While I am crossing my fingers and toes for the Matildas to win their quarter final on Saturday, I am also crossing my fingers and toes that the new CBA will bring the Matildas closer to pay equality.