Netball players ‘sleeping in cars’ as ugly reality of drawn-out pay dispute hits home

Former Diamonds captain Kathryn Harby-Williams says some of her netball contemporaries have “slept in their cars” as the brutal reality of the sports ongoing pay war hits home. Meanwhile, Australian Netball Players Association president and Melbourne Vixens defender Jo Weston has been reduced to tears in front of media during a highly emotional press conference on Thursday. After the latest pay deal from Netball Australia was rejected, disillusioned players are now considering whether to pass a vote of no confidence in the sport’s governing body and further industrial action cannot be ruled out.

Netball Australia and the ANPA have been at loggerheads since February, with Super players boycotting the sport’s annual awards dinner last Saturday. However, Diamonds players did attend the ‘night of nights’ under the threat of legal action. Names highlighted in a shock legal letter included player advisor Ian Prendergast (director of Sports Advisory Partners Australia) and Harby-Williams (who is the ANPA chief executive).

Weston said players were extremely upset with the fact that those those two figures had been singled out. “I think, especially for them to be directed to Ian (Prendergast) and Kath (Harby-Williams), who have worked so tirelessly on behalf of our players, was quite devastating for our playing group,” Weston said. “We’ve been so lucky to have such strong advocates and such amazing people helping us be able to have a player voice – we don’t have a full strength players’ association like other codes do in Australia but the letter that came through just prior to the awards, it is hard to talk about.

“The Netball Australia awards are one of my favourite . . .

It’s been really hard. “All of us just want to be able to move forward with what we think is fair and reasonable for our playing group. “We want to feel like we’re valued.

We want to feel like we’re respected and listened to and hopefully tomorrow when we’re in the room we’ll be able to get something done for our players. ” The sport’s governing body and the ANPA are set to meet on Friday in Melbourne to try to hammer out an end to the bitter saga which has left players unpaid for the past two months. NA had hoped to reach a deal on Wednesday with a new offer that included an 11 per cent pay rise back-dated to October 1, the day after the last collective player agreement (CPA) ended.

NA agreed to the union’s demands for a first-ever revenue-share proposal, which had been a sticking point, however they want players to return to work while the final terms of the model are negotiated. Harby-Williams called the latest pay offer a “publicity stunt”. Along with saying players had been “sleeping in cars”, Harby-Williams also said some players had also been forced to move back in with their families.

“We were actually a little bit confused as to what (the latest offer) was,” Harby-Williams said. “We’ve been negotiating the collective bargaining agreement in totality. “We are desperate to get a deal done for these players because that’s the emotional toll that you are seeing right there (referring to Weston’s tears).

“I have had players sobbing and weeping; players have slept in their cars; players have had to move out of their homes and move across the country back to families. “That’s the toll that this is taking on these players. ” In the latest offer, NA boosted their offer of a guaranteed total increase in benefits to 23 per cent ($1.

45 million). Minimum salaries will rise from $40,000 to $46,600 with ongoing increases over the term of a three-year CPA, pushing the average wage to $86,500. Chief executive Kelly Ryan said NA wanted to further discuss the revenue-share model with players as well as opportunities for them to work with commercial partners to grow the sport.

“We have listened to the players and their need for financial certainty right now,” Ryan said in a statement on Wednesday. “This offer we have put forward would allow them to be paid immediately, while we continue negotiations with ANPA on building a financial model for the league. “We hope this will provide all parties the certainty and stability they seek.

” She also conceded the ongoing pay battle could impact the 2024 Super Netball season – due to begin in April – and have a lasting impact on the sport in Australia. Ryan said she was unsure whether players had a full appreciation of netball’s financial struggles following the COVID pandemic. “We’re still in a financial tightrope,” Ryan told SEN on Thursday.

“We’re trying to make sure we make the right investments in the right areas, that includes our players, but minimising the impact on us longer term. “We want to get from where we are today to out of his financial situation as quick as we possibly can. ”.