'They deserve the amount of money that they're getting': Australia's best female cricketer Alyssa Healy defends her sport's gender pay gap
- Australia's cricketing power couple open up about cricket and life together
- Cricketers Mitchell Starc and Alyssa Healy have been married since April 2016
- They also spoke about the gender pay gap between male and female cricketers
Australian cricket great Alyssa Healy has defended her sport's gender pay gap during a surprisingly candid interview.
Ms Healy, Australia's female wicket-keeper, niece of cricketing great Ian Healy and 2019 Belinda Clark Award winner for best test player, has made quite a name for herself since debuting in 2010.
The 29-year-old, who married fellow cricketer Mitchell Starc in 2016, spoke about her success to 60 Minutes on Sunday night.
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The 29-year-old, who married fellow cricketer Mitchell Starc (pictured together) in 2016, spoke about her success to 60 Minutes on Sunday night
In a shocking move, the athlete defended her sport's gender pay gap.
'I'm realistic in saying that it's the men's team are bringing in most of the money, and they deserve the amount of money that they're getting, while we keep building our game. I've got no doubt that one day the women's game will do exactly the same,' she said.
Meanwhile, Starc gave a slightly more diplomatic answer when asked the same question.
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'It's not for me to determine what I get paid and what she gets paid, that's up to Cricket Australia,' he said.
Despite the current disparity, Healy said she has complete faith the current crop of female players will blaze a path toward a brighter future Australia's female cricket team.
'There's more opportunities for young girls and older girls like me to go out and play for their country and actually get paid for what we're doing, so I think that's pretty special,' she said.
Despite the current disparity, Healy (pictured with Mr Starc) said she has complete faith the current crop of female players will blaze a path toward a brighter future Australia's female cricket team
Cricket Australia has already started making moves to address the gender pay gap.
CA's ground-breaking 2017 pay deal introduced an equal base rate of pay for male and female elite cricketers for the first time.
Meanwhile, in February The Male Champions of Change (MCC) Sport released an initiative to help tackle the issue titled 'Pathway to Pay Equality'.
CA's experience was drawn upon in the development of the Pathway to Pay Equality.
The initiative resulted in a world first when leaders from multiple sports around the world all came together to support the message of pay equality.
Founder and Convenor of MCC Sport Elizabeth Broderick said the important role sport plays in the Australian culture meant it was imperative women were afforded the same opportunities as men.
CA's ground-breaking 2017 pay deal introduced an equal base rate of pay for male and female elite cricketers for the first time
'Sport plays a critical role in Australia's economy, national identity, social cohesion and community well-being,' Ms Broderick said.
'Yet equal pay – the most visible manifestation of a genuine commitment to equality – still remains out of reach for elite women athletes across many sports.
'We believe the inter-connected steps outlined in the report provide the pathway to gender equality and delivering equal pay in sport.'
CEO of Sport Australia Kate Palmer says Australia has the opportunity to be a global leader.
'Many of our elite women athletes are among the most successful on the world stage,' she said.
'As a sports-loving nation, we are championing a system-wide re-set in the way we support, pay and reward our female athletes.'
Tennis Australia has also highlighted its willingness to tackle the gender pay gap in sport.
Australia's Mitchell Starc celebrates after dismissing Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal during day four of the second Test match between Australia and Sri Lankain February
'We've demonstrated through equal prize money and exposure that women's tennis has massive appeal and can more than hold its own,' Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley said.
'This is driven by the belief that the best player of a Grand Slam event – both male and female – should be rewarded equally for their ability to achieve at the highest level.'
Australia's Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Kate Jenkins, also expressed her support for the initiative.
'Sport is such a unifying force in Australia', she said.
'We can and should be leading the way globally in championing gender equality through every aspect of sport , access, participation, investment, recognition and pay for our elite women athletes.'
The MCC conducted a study in 2018 to determine the gender pay gap in sport, using 10 sporting organisations for its data collection.
The study was then completed with data collected by the Australian Government's Workplace Gender Equality Agency.
The study found an average overall pay gap of 27 per cent among participating organisations.
This is compared to 31.5 per cent or WGEA's 'Sports and Physical Recreation Activities' category and the national average of 21.3 per cent according to WGEA's 2018 Annual Pay Equity Scorecard.
Mr Starc and Ms Healy attend the 2019 Australian Cricket Awards at Crown Palladium
