AUSTRALIAN SWIMMERS UNIONIZE! - Will negoitiate for better wages from thier governing body 'Swimming Australia'

[UPDATE: I just found out that US national team swimmers get a stipend of $21k - I am probably the last person to find this out. Here is a link to Swimming World with the details: [LINK]

This article from the Sydney Morning Herald discusses how swimmers down under will be able to collectively negotiate their wages with Swimming Australia. It was sent to me by somebody I truly respect and has contributed so much to the sport.

Swimming Australia is the equivalent of "USA Swimming" for Australia. Unlike USA Swimming which has a $34-million a year budget, Swimming Australia's budget is 18-million-dollars Australian. (Currently equal parity with the US Dollar.)

The Swimming Australian "pool" of money to be divided amongst 86 swimmers is $1.5-million which translates to about $17,500 each. (No wonder they are negotiating.) - Apparently the stipend money Swimming Australia dolls out has a sliding scale. From the article:

From SMH.com.au:

"... The Australian Swimmers Association, the ''union'' for the Olympic swim team, has just been given a tentative 10-year licence from cartel buster Graeme Samuel's competition commission to negotiate better deals with the governing body, Swimming Australia. [...]"

"... At the moment, level 1 swimmers get only $2468 a month, or less than $30,000 a year, for hours of gruelling early morning training, gym workouts, media appearances and travelling to competitions. The average wage in Australia is more than double that. ..."

[Link]

If USA Swimming was collectively bound to give almost 10% of the base income, that revenue would would roughly fall at $33,700 for each national team member. This is not an exorbitant number; In fact, I find it paltry in comparison to the revenue they generate. I also think USA Swimming should throw in the same health insurance benefits their executives get if a wage can be negotiated.

I think USA National Team members should seriously consider collective bargaining. Here is a link to the AFL/CIO which explains how a union can be created: [Link]