Pay equality works for tennis: Tilley

Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tilley says pay equity works perfectly fine for the sport.

Australia’s leading sport organisations have joined forces to create the “Pathway to Pay Equality” plan, which details steps on reducing the gender pay gap.

Tennis Australia was cited as an organisation that has taken positive steps towards equal pay.

Tilley says this is because the organisation pays athletes based on value instead of time spent in the workforce.

“We don’t necessarily look at it as time that is spent in the work that you do,” Tilley told SEN’s Whateley.

“We don’t look at it as a pay per hour calculation, we look at it as a value calculation.

“The value that the women’s tennis bring to our event and brings to the sport ecosystem for tennis is significant.”

Tilley believes that pay equity is beneficial for the sport and says it’s providing positive outcomes.

“We believe it more than serves tennis well,” he told Gerard Whateley.

“We think it adds to the offering that we provide and hence there’s more girls that want to participate in tennis than boys in many cases.

“They see a real professional opportunity for them to have a career where they’re not looked at separately because they are girls.

“We’ve levelled the playing field and we’ve taken both of these together, both men’s and women’s tennis, and we’ve grown it together so that’s been good for business.”

Listen to Craig Tilley on Whateley in the player below.