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sports Saturday 6 auguSt 2022

NCAA hoops leagues grapple with unequal pay for women's refs

By DOUG FEINBERG Atlantic-10 Commissioner
AP Basketball Writer Bernadette McGlade said
The NCAA earned praise the market-based ap-
last year when it agreed proach is what enables her
to pay referees at its men's to offer some of the highest
and women's basketball per-game rates across the
tournaments equally. The NCAA. "We get the most
gesture only cost about experienced, most quali-
$100,000, a tiny fraction fied officials in the country,"
of the roughly $900 million she said.
networks pay annually to Veteran referees officiating
broadcast March Mad- in the Atlantic-10 are paid
ness. $3,300 for men's games,
Now, as the NCAA ex- compared with $2,300 for
amines various disparities women's games, accord-
across men's and women's ing to data reviewed by
sports, pressure is rising to AP. Seven other conferenc-
also pay referees equally es had higher per-game
during the regular season. rates — and narrower gen-
Two Division I conferences der gaps — last year, the
told The Associated Press data show.
they plan to equalize pay, Of the roughly 800 referees
and another is consider- officiating women's basket-
ing it. Others are resisting Referee Dee Kantner works in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game between ball this past season, 43%
change, even though the Tennessee and Vanderbilt Monday, Jan. 5, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. were female, a proportion
impact on their budgets Associated Press that's been relatively con-
would be negligible. sistent over the past de-
"The ones that are (equal- AP with data for nearly half Morris said the decision to court for 40 minutes one cade. But just six women
izing pay) are reading the of the NCAA's 32 Division I equalize pay was an easy night, getting a few hours officiated men's games last
writing on the wall," said conferences have direct one to make once it real- of sleep, and then waking year — a number that has
Michael Lewis, a market- knowledge of pay scales, ized that basketball was up at 4 a.m. to catch a slowly grown over the last
ing professor at Emory Uni- and they did so on condi- the only sport where it was flight to their next destina- few years.
versity's Goizueta Business tion of anonymity because not compensating referees tion. Penny Davis, the NCAA's
School. the information is consid- equally. Dee Kantner, a veteran supervisor of officials, said
The details of NCAA referee ered private. Relative to the amounts of referee of women's games conferences are trying to
pay are closely guarded, The Northeast Conference money these leagues gen- who works for multiple con- recruit more women to offi-
but The Associated Press had the widest per-game erate, the cost of bridging ferences, finds it frustrating ciate men's games, which is
obtained data for the 2021- pay disparity among the the pay gap can seem to have to justify equal pay. another way to help bridge
22 season that show 15 of NCAA leagues AP ana- small. "If I buy an airline ticket and the gender pay gap.
the NCAA's largest — and lyzed, with the most expe- For example, the SEC paid tell them I'm doing a wom- But Davis says she would
most profitable -- confer- rienced referees for men's referees for men's games en's basketball game they hate to see even fewer
ences paid veteran refer- games earning 48% more. 10%, or $350, more than aren't going to charge me women refereeing wom-
ees for men's basketball an The Atlantic-10 paid vet- those officiating women's less," she said. en's basketball. "We don't
average of 22% more per eran men's refs 44% more, games. Over the course "Do you value women's want to lose our best and
game. while the Colonial Athletic of a season, it would cost basketball that much less?" brightest," she said.
That level of disparity is Association paid them the SEC a couple hundred Kantner said. "How are we A decade ago, referees
wider than the gender pay 38% more. (Only the Ivy thousand dollars to pay rationalizing this still?" working the men's and
gap across the U.S. econ- League paid veteran offi- them equally -- a sliver of Several conference com- women's NCAA Tourna-
omy, where women earn cials equally in the data AP the $3 billion deal it signed missioners said the men's ment were paid equally.
82 cents for every dollar a reviewed.) with ESPN to broadcast all and women's games But as the profitability of the
man earns, according to Of the conferences with of its sports starting in 2024. do not generate equal men's tournament skyrock-
the 2020 census. And it is unequal pay contacted The most experienced Divi- amounts of revenue, and eted, it's budget grew too
an overwhelming disad- by AP, two -- the Pac-12 sion I referees — for men's that the level of play is not -- and so did pay for refer-
vantage for women, who and the Northeast Confer- or women's games — are equal, and so referee sala- ees.
make up less than 1% of the ence — said they plan to well paid. Some earn more ries are set accordingly. Both McGlade and Ack-
referees officiating men's level the playing field start- than $150,000 in a season, "Historically we have treat- erman praised the NCAA
games. ing next season. A third, the officiating dozens of games ed each referee pool as a for restoring equal pay at
Dawn Staley, the head Patriot League, which had across multiple conferenc- separate market," said Big the March tournaments.
coach for the University a 33% pay gap last year, es. East Commissioner Val Ack- "We're mindful of the what
of South Carolina Game- said it is reviewing equity for Newer referees earn far erman. "We paid rates that the NCAA did for the tour-
cocks — the women's na- officials in all sports. "Pay is less, supplementing in- allow us to be competitive nament," Ackerman said.
tional champions — said part of that," commissioner come from another job. for services at our level. I "NCAA Tournament games
referees on the men's side Jennifer Heppel said. All NCAA referees are inde- think the leagues are enti- are closer but not entirely a
should be "stepping up" The Pac-12 paid referees pendent contractors, with tled to look at different fac- common officiating experi-
and advocating for equal equally a decade ago, but no union representing their tors here. I don't see it as an ence."
pay for women's referees. allowed a disparity to build interests, and all have to equity issue — I see it as a Ivy League executive direc-
"They don't do anything over time, according to as- cover their own travel ex- market issue." tor Robin Harris disagrees.
different," she said. "Why sociate commissioner Te- penses. The Big East pays referees "We decided a while ago
should our officials get paid resa Gould. She said return- The busiest referees can working its men's games that it was the right thing to
less for taking the (exple- ing to equal pay is "the right work five or six games a 22% more, and Ackerman do to pay them the same
tive) we give them?" thing to do." week in different cities, said there is no imminent amount. They are doing
The people who provided NEC commissioner Noreen running up and down the plan to make a change. the same job."q