AFLW players have been rewarded with a pay rise ahead of the 2018 season, with the AFLPA and AFL agreeing to amend the original agreement to ensure it better captures the demands placed upon the competition’s 240 players.
Total player payments will increase by $500,000 next year under a revised tiered payment system that sees the minimum wage of a senior listed player rise from $8,500 to $10,500.
Tier 1 players will now be paid $20,000 (up from $17,000) and those in Tier 2 have been given a $2500 boost (now $14,500). Rookie list players will be paid $8,500.
AFL Players’ Association CEO Paul Marsh says this new model will better reward AFLW players for the time and energy they sink into training, recovery and preparation.
“It was quite clear from our discussions with players that all clubs trained in excess of the nine hours set out in their contracts during the first AFLW season,” Marsh said.
“While players were willing to do more in Year 1 to increase their skills and develop as footballers, we were of the view that players must be paid for the hours actually performed.
“The AFL agreed with us on this point and we were able to reach agreement on a revised payment scale that better captured the level of commitment required to train and prepare for the AFLW competition but also gave the clubs some flexibility within their own programs.”
Players were initially contracted for nine hours per week, not including games, during the 2017 season but this will increase to an average of 13 hours during the pre-season — with no more than 15 hours allowed — and 10 hours across the in-season period in 2018.
The average number of hours is to allow clubs to go slightly over or under in a given week but all programs will still require AFL/AFLPA approval.
There will be no ‘marquee’ players in 2018, with clubs now able to award two or more ambassador contracts worth between $5,000 – $10,000 to any player on its list up to $40,000.
Total Player Payments in the inaugural season was $2,275,000, which will increase to $2,752,000 next year — excluding ambassador contracts and rookie upgrades.
The AFLW draftees will gather in Melbourne tomorrow for the annual AFLW Induction Camp.
