The PFA and the FFA have been negotiating a whole-of-game collective bargaining agreement covering the Socceroos, Matildas and Hyundai A-League players. FFA CEO David Gallop has claimed that the Matildas, who have not been paid in two months, are being caught up in what is essentially a dispute about the salary cap for male players. The players and the PFA deny that this is the case, arguing that what the Matildas are asking for is simple; they don’t want to be paid part-time wages for full-time work.
The Matildas don’t have pay equity because the truth is football, like a majority of other sports, has a gender problem. It’s not overt or outwardly sexist, but I’ve been a player, a coach and an administrator and it’s hard not to feel like second class citizen most of the time. The FFA is taking steps to slowly bring about changes. However, it is hard to make changes at a grassroots level when the most senior and skilled women in your sport aren’t being paid fairly. It is hard to tell young girls that they should aspire to be a Matilda, when no one can be a Matilda full-time.
When you ask why there is such a disparity between female and male footballers the answer is always the same. It doesn’t matter if it is the national team or your local suburban soccer club; the men make more money so ‘that’s the way it is’. That argument doesn’t make much sense when you think about the potential return clubs could make on their investment into women’s football. Despite there being a 50/50 gender spilt, only 20% of players in Australia are female, meaning the potential for growth by increasing participation is huge.
Despite these arguments we know that this issue is not unique to football; most women in sport are paid considerably less than their male counterparts. For example, the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) regulates the minimum a male cyclist can be paid; however there are no such regulations for women who are paid a fraction of the amount men can earn. There are not a lot of women who can afford to make sport their only occupation.
We also know that the Matildas are not alone as female workers. The gender pay gap in Australia is now at 17.9% or roughly $284.20 a week. Last week, on September 4, it was equal pay day, the day that marks the additional days from 1 July 2015 that women need to work to earn the same amount as men. These statistics get repeated each year, and we talk about how something needs to change and yet the gap is widening instead of getting any better.
Interestingly, what these figures also show is that the gender pay gap is lower when pay is set through a collective agreement. That’s why it is wrong for commentators, fans and CEOs to criticise the action being taken by the PFA and players. In cancelling their tour, the Matildas they are giving up an incredible chance to gain experience and exposure. However, they are entitled to take collective action and we should be supporting them in doing so.
The whole-of-game agreement is being proposed because it will mean better outcomes for everyone. It is ok for the Tim Cahills of the world to negotiate their own contract, but the players on the fringe must bargain together if they want to achieve fair wages and conditions. They’re not doing it to punish the fans or because they are greedy or unreasonable.
Perhaps if the players were members of a traditional industrial union we wouldn’t question the legitimacy of their claims. However, the narrative being driven by the FFA sounds eerily similar to anti-union sentiment. That’s why it is important for workers and players alike, especially women, to be able to engage in collective action.
Collective action has delivered equal pay, sex discrimination laws, maternity leave and paid parental leave to Australian women. These rights weren’t granted, they were fought for by women who didn’t accept the same excuses that, ‘that’s just the way it is’. When women stand together they can achieve equality, or at the very least another important incremental step towards it.
There is no doubting that the Matildas play for the love of the game. You only need to watch five minutes of their performances at the Women’s World Cup to see that their passion for the game pours out on to the park. But that doesn’t mean that they should be playing for passion alone. These young women inspired a whole new generation of girls after their outstanding performances in Canada. Hopefully, by standing up and standing together, they will also inspire a new generation of women and girls to stand up together for equality, whether it is at work or on the football pitch.