The New Zealand Professional Footballers Association "went public with its desire to achieve a single collective agreement, providing equal conditions for men and women" in int'l football, according to Liam Hyslop of STUFF. The move would be a "largely symbolic gesture," with the Ferns and All Whites already sharing some equal benefits in the form of NZ$115 ($80) daily payments during camps, getting 40% of prize money won by their team and the "protection of image rights." The main "tangible thing" a joint collective agreement would bring is the guarantee of business-class flights for Europe-based Football Ferns to and from int'l matches, which the All Whites currently have. That is "understood to likely come at a cost of about" NZ$40,000 ($27,730) per year to New Zealand Football. Former Football Fern Sarah Gregorius said that the push for a single agreement "was more about being aspirational, rather than wanting any tangible benefit." She said, "I think it's needed because of what it symbolically represents. We actually haven't asked them to come up with huge amounts of money in terms of player wages and central contracts. We've actually just asked them to elevate the Football Ferns to have the same sort of entitlements and be treated with the same respect the All Whites are" (STUFF, 11/6).
