Cricket Australia and the country’s players’ union have seemingly avoided a pay dispute after both parties decided to defer revenue predictions after the coronavirus pandemic. CA had previously planned to distribute a significantly reduced amount into the player payment pool that was negotiated with the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) as a fixed percentage of revenue under a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2017.
“Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers’ Association have today agreed a way forward on Australian Cricket’s response to COVID-19,” a CA spokesman said. “The parties have agreed to postpone the Australian Cricket Revenue projection until such time they are better able to assess the financial impact of the pandemic and calculate a clear projection for the year ahead.
“With today’s agreement, the ACA has agreed to withdraw its notice of dispute lodged last month with CA. We would like to thank the ACA for the constructive manner in which they have engaged in discussions in what has been a challenging time for the game.”
In early June, CA had claimed that the projected revenue for the forthcoming summer would be halved because of the coronavirus pandemic. While the projection would not have affected the players’ fees or retainers, it would have significantly reduced the amount passed to players as part of the “adjustment ledger” distributed annually to account for revenue above CA’s 2017 projections.
“Today’s agreement is a significant step forward in cricket’s response to the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic and should provide our stakeholders with renewed clarity and confidence about the summer ahead,” the spokesman said.
“Calculating revenue projections 12 months ahead during a once-in-a-century pandemic has not been without its challenges, but we believe we have arrived at a position that provides all parties with greater certainty about how to navigate the next year.”