Women win on pay day
W-LEAGUE players will earn the equivalent minimum wage to the men in a landmark deal on the eve of the Women’s World Cup.
Meanwhile A-League new boys Western United will have a $400,000 bonus war chest in their inaugural season, after soccer’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) was revealed.
The 10 exiting clubs have received a $137,000 (4.5 per cent) cap increase to $3.2 million, compared with United’s $3.6 million, while working group has been set up to explore the possibility of abolishing salary cap and reintroducing transfers within the domestic competition — which has been banned since 2005.
Two years on from a survey that revealed “professional” WLeague players were out of pocket $2237 on average per season with no minimum salary in place, the base wage has risen to $16,344. Pro rata, it matches the men’s base wage once factoring in the shorter four-month W-League season. Many players supplement income by heading abroad in between.
The Australian players’ union is taking a big role in the fight for FIFA to raise the Women’s World Cup purse of $43 million (compared with $574 million for Russia 2018), and its support of women’s soccer domestically continues.
“We’re very proud that we have been able to anchor the minimum conditions for W-League players to those of A-League players. It’s a moment in time that the players should be proud of,” player’ union chief John Didulica said.
“Due to the significant complexity in moving toward an independent league, the PFA’s motivation in reaching this extension was to help facilitate a more stable foundation for this potential transition and continue advancing fundamental areas.
“They include record funding for player development and wellbeing and entrenching gender equality across minimum standards such as pay.”