Dispute between AFL, staff union escalates after decision to stand down reporter Mitch Cleary
A stoush between the AFL and a union representing dozens of staff stood down across the country has escalated dramatically after the decision to stand down AFL Media reporter Mitch Cleary.
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Sin-binned AFL reporter Mitch Cleary has become the poster boy of an escalating stoush between the unions and league chiefs.
AFL bosses fired off a letter to a Sydney-based employee on Tuesday warning him to cease and desist using “AFL group email systems without authorisation” to recruit potential union members.
The United Services Union in Sydney and Australian Services Union in Melbourne have begun representing dozens of stood down AFL staff across the country ahead of an expected flurry of job cuts.
The USU says the AFL’s shock decision to banish Cleary last Friday for reporting on COVID protocol breaches in Queensland hubs “should send shudders through the ranks of AFL staff already grappling with the uncertainty and secrecy surrounding their futures”.
“In recent weeks, we’ve seen a senior journalist from AFL Media, apparently independent from the league, stood down for doing his job; his job is to report the facts,” USU acting manager private sector Troy Dunne said.
“More recently, we’ve obtained emails from our members that clearly indicate the AFL are actively attempting to put a clamp on the ability of our members to use their collective voice.
“These actions by the league go to two things, fairness and transparency and raise the question, ‘Why is the league so determined to limit the flow of information to its most important stakeholders - its staff and the footy loving public?’”
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The ringleader behind the union dispute can be revealed as AFL/NSW state umpiring manager Pierce Field.
Field used the league’s internal group email system on Monday to offer union representation to hundreds of AFL staffers.
“If demand is there, we will organise another confidential Zoom meeting in the coming weeks so you can hear what joining your union is all about,” Field wrote.
AFL/NSW people business partner Krista Limbrey wrote to Field on Tuesday reminding him of his “obligations as an AFL employee to act in good faith and in the best interests of the AFL”.
“We have received a number of communications from employees who were upset and unhappy to have been contacted in this manner,” Limbrey said.
“While you are entitled to engage in union activity, you are still required to comply with lawful and reasonable directions regarding the use of work emails.”
In a reply to Limbrey on Wednesday, Dunne said he had formed the view that the AFL’s direction to Field “isn’t reasonable and lawful and contravenes sections of the Fair Work Act”.
“The USU has taken the firm and reasonable inference that you and/or the AFL reserves the right to take action against employees, up to and including dismissal, if they continue to promote the interests of the USU and Australian Services Union via the AFL’s email systems.”
Cleary, who was reinstated by the AFL after fierce public backlash on Monday, has been contacted by Field offering union support.
“G’day Mitch. We’ve never met before, but I am pretty shocked and appalled at the decision to stand you down. I hope you are doing OK,” Field said in an email.
“If you want to chat and/or need some industrial advice, would be great to talk.”
AFL ‘FAILING THEIR OWN’ OVER STAFF CUTS
Disgruntled AFL staff have turned to the unions in a bid to save their jobs.
The league stood down about 80 per cent of its workforce in March and many have been told they will be required to reapply for their positions.
Seventeen staff have engaged the United Services Union in NSW, while the Victorian branch of the Australian Services Union will represent workers based at AFL House in the Docklands.
Both unions say they will be demanding a seat at the negotiation table and are prepared to take potential disputes to the Fair Work Commission.
The league has repeatedly refused to disclose how many staff it employs, but hundreds of jobs are set to be slashed under a savage cost-cutting plan aimed at delivering a “leaner, faster, stronger and more focused” AFL administration.
United Services Union general secretary Graeme Kelly said AFL workers were becoming increasingly frustrated.
“The AFL claims a commitment to social justice and equality, but they are failing to uphold those values with their treatment of the loyal staff who work tirelessly behind the scenes,” Kelly said.
“AFL management are responsible for the current financial crisis — they failed to put money aside from the rivers of gold that flowed during the good years — and now staff are being forced to pay the price.
“While players, through the AFL Players’ Association, have been given a seat at the table when big decisions are being made, that same consideration is being refused to staff.
“Staff deserve to be at the negotiating table, with a strong collective voice through their unions, rather than the current situation where secretive decisions are imposed by AFL management.”
Australian Services Union Victorian private sector branch secretary Matt Norrey said AFL staff feared management “was looking to use the COVID-19 pandemic as cover to slash up to 60 per cent of their workforce”.
“While some of the 80 per cent of staff stood down in the early days of this crisis have returned to work, AFL management appear to hope others will simply give up and resign, rather than come back to work or receive genuine redundancies,” Norrey said.
“Staff report being asked to ‘re-pitch their talent’, effectively forcing them to justify keeping their current jobs, without any transparency about how the process is operating.
“Management are hiding behind confidentiality to avoid giving information to staff about their future, adding to the uncertainty and stress around job security.”
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An internal document leaked last month detailed the league’s plan to streamline its bureaucracy and create what it has declared will be a “new AFL”.
It outlines a vision for a more “talented and empowered team of all-rounders” who were “collaborative, aligned and inspired by a shared purpose”.
“We will have a leaner structure with less roles,” the document states.
“Many roles will be impacted based on changes to what programs, products and services we continue, do differently or stop.
“While we will keep some specialist roles there will be more generalist roles – with multiple responsibilities.”
AFL staff wages topped $115.6 million in 2019, but an official headcount is no longer divulged in the league’s annual report filed with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
The AFL — a not-for-profit organisation which does not pay tax — operates about a dozen departments, including the office of the chief executive, football operations, game development, legal and integrity, commercial operations, corporate affairs, finance and broadcasting, infrastructure, major projects and investment, inclusion and social policy, AFL Media, strategy and human resources.
Its 12-person executive team pocketed $10.56 million in combined salaries last year, an average of $880,000.
The AFL says staff who are continuing to work have taken a minimum 20 per cent cut, while others are earning 40-60 per cent less.