I recently watched a brilliant insight into the work that goes on at a county cricket ground.
Gary Barwell, head grounds manager at Edgbaston, has recorded a fascinating video to educate the public on the work he and his team do at the home of Warwickshire County Cricket Club. You can watch it here.
What I found particularly interesting were Gary’s comments towards the end of the video, where he talks about the negativity our industry sometimes faces, regarding the quality of pitches being prepared by professionals - from people who do not understand the complexities and physical challenges that are required to produce these topflight surfaces.
Negative comments such as these are not helping our industry, especially when we are trying to recruit the next generation of turf professionals. And, more importantly, when we really know that our standard of professional pitch preparation across all sports in the UK, is exceptional.
Poor pay
Also, what is of course hindering our mission to recruit fresh blood, is the simple fact that turf professionals are still relatively poorly paid, compared to other industries.
In recent years we have admittedly seen some long-overdue headway made in pay and conditions, driven by our industry organisations. Both the GMA and BIGGA have championed the wage structures for our sector – but, alas, I still don’t believe they are where they should be. Not when you consider the skills, experience, qualifications and work ethic required of professional grounds staff.
We also have seen several high-profile grounds managers working hard to improve working conditions and pay for their staff. John Ledwidge formally of Leicester City FC, and now working for Manchester City FC, has definitely made his mark, along with others, in trying to raise standards and working conditions. The likes of Gary Barwell and Karl McDermott at Edgbaston and Lord’s have recently publicly commented on the work they have being doing to raise standards. However, for me personally, the current salaries paid to these top turf professionals is still way off the mark and nowhere near what they should be getting paid - especially when you hear the wages Premier League players are on and the value that these top clubs are worth.
Surely we as an industry should be talking and making inroads to getting better pay for all the grounds staff who work in topflight sporting venues? For those employed to deliver high quality facilities, we should be expecting them to be on a decent minimum wage - in the realms of perhaps £35-£40,000 per year. Plus not forgetting to guarantee excellent working conditions, pensions and health benefits.
When you take into consideration the unsociable hours these professionals must work, the above pay recommendations would be chicken feed to wealthy clubs. I believe it is really time clubs recognised and rewarded these turf professionals for the effort, skills and commitment in delivering a safe and consistent surface for these highly paid players, directors and shareholders.
The same should be said for the top golfing venues of course. There should be a wage structure that reflects the work that greenkeepers do to prepare these championship courses. Generally, the course manager or head greenkeeper may be on a decent wage, but the rest of the staff are no doubt on a lower wage structure.
I am sure if we managed to get top ranking sports facilities, who earn exceptional amounts of money from TV deals and sponsorships, to pay their grounds staff a decent wage, our industry would be in a better place to encourage and entice the next generation to come and work in our diverse and amazing sector.
It really is time that the sporting world valued the work ethic of these dedicated turf professionals.
Highlighting wage levels
Speaking of wages, I received an interesting article from a former grounds practitioner, Mike Chappell, who now runs a recruitment agency for grounds professionals. His piece, that we’re running today, is about the need for wage salaries to be highlighted on job advertisements.
Mike is the Owner of Chappell Enterprises UK, a specialist recruitment business working in the golf, sportsturf, grounds maintenance, landscaping, arboriculture and horticulture industries.
He worked on the tools for over 10 years, completing seasons as a greenkeeper at St Andrews, Wentworth and Welschap in The Netherlands. His last notable role was as head of grounds at Wellingborough School where he spent near two years looking after football, rugby, and cricket pitches, as well as a 9 hole golf course.
He says today, “In the competitive landscape of today's job market, employers must adopt strategies that attract top talent and provide transparency. One effective strategy that has gained considerable attention is the practice of advertising the salary in job postings. This approach not only benefits job seekers but also provides significant advantages to employers.” He gives several compelling reasons why employers should consider this practice.
You can read his revealing article in full here.
