Adelaide United sacking equipment manager Chris Kelly and calling for volunteers has prompted action from a trade unionist
The axing of likeable Adelaide United kit man Chris Kelly lingers almost a month after he was made redundant.
Adelaide United
Don't miss out on the headlines from Adelaide United. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- I’m not feeling the heat: Verbeek
- Elsey notches 100 games for Reds
- How to get the most out of your Advertiser digital subscription
Adelaide United’s ex-equipment manager and photographer Chris Kelly is seeking legal advice after he was made redundant by the club just before Christmas.
His shock axing caused a furore on social media.
An advertisement on the Playford Sports Network in search of volunteers this month caused more outrage, prompting action from Labor member for Cheltenham and trade unionist Joe Szakacs.
Watch every Hyundai A-League game LIVE & On-Demand on KAYO. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
Szakacs this week met Reds chief executive Nathan Kosmina and football director Bruce Djite after fans voiced concerns Kelly was to be replaced by volunteers.
“After being contacted by a number of concerned supporters, I met with the CEO (Kosmina) and director of football (Djite) to discuss the club’s community and volunteer relationship with the City of Playford,’’ Szakacs said.
“They assured me the club were committed to ensuring paid jobs were supported by volunteering contributions – and never to be replaced by them.
“We also discussed the increasing prevalence of bogus volunteer roles across all corners of the economy replacing real jobs, like the example we saw when Sydney FC tried to pass off a university qualified strength and conditioning role as volunteer.”
The Advertiser had asked Reds officials why Kelly had been made redundant, who was doing his current job and whether the club had advertised for volunteers to replace the equipment manager.
Djite responded in a statement.
“The advertised volunteer positions do not replace the capacity of any paid position at the club, including that of the equipment manager, and are not a mandatory function for our football department,’’ Djite said.
“The same volunteer positions have been in place for over 10 years and simply serve to support our players and coaches.
“I have personally made lifelong friendships with those who volunteered at the club during my time as a player, and they all add something very special to the culture of the club, as is the case with all professional sporting clubs.
“Over the past six months, we have undertaken a review of our football operations and have restructured football staff roles, however no roles have or will be replaced by volunteer staff.
“We continue to look for efficiency dividends within the organisation where possible.”
Sydney FC officials were forced to apologise after a backlash for advertising a job with university-degree level requirements as a volunteer role in August.
Kelly was contacted for comment.