Here's an interesting article about what is taking place with the diminishing pool of sports officials in NW Montana. I don't know who would want to take the abuse these guys endure from the fans, coaches and players for the ridiculous pay rate they receive. Here is a small portion of the story appearing today.

Flathead Beacon 8/28/19

High school sports have a big problem, and it has nothing to do with the players on the field. It has nothing to do with the fields and gyms where the games are played, with the hours required of stretched-thin student-athletes and coaches, with the increasing costs of equipment, travel and private coaching, with the inherent injury risks associated with sports, and with big-money outside forces threatening to undermine the entire prep sports construct, although those remain concerns.

No, the most critical problem with high school sports is with officiating and, no, it isn’t that they blow every call, don’t know the rules or are out to get your son/daughter/niece/nephew/friend/neighbor’s team because of some unseen bias.

But the problem with officiating is so dire that it could change some of the fundamental ground on which prep sports is built. It could move football’s famed Friday night lights to other nights of the week, could jeopardize the safety of the student-athletes on the field of play and could put at risk the tenuous order of game competition that helps teach the lifelong lessons learned through sport.

LINK

quote:

In Montana, referees are paid $60 for varsity contests and are compensated 12 cents per mile for their travel.

Sounds like they need to raise the pay.
It should probably be about double that amount.

quote:

In Montana, referees are paid $60 for varsity contests and are compensated 12 cents per mile for their travel.

Holy crap, that probably doesn't even cover gas, let alone wear and tear. Just for reference, the current federal rate is 58 cents/mi.

$60 for High School are you serious??

I was a youth league soccer ref while I was in middle school and I got paid $30 a game. That was nearly 25 years ago.

Whenver I am at a high school or lower level game and one of the parents bitches about a call on the field I'll simply ask "have you ever tried to officiate?".
Unless they say yes, I promptly ask them to shut the Fuck Up.

It's a person. They are usually doing the best they can based on their experience, training, etc..

I agree the wages in Montana seem way too low.

Cheers~

Let the AIs do it. They're going to do everything else.

Holy Carp!! Even in 2010 the umpires received $60 + federal mileage rates to call a game (to include ejecting a coach - lol). Then again, rarely saw any abuse from parents or players. Coaches could be vocal but in a respectful manner.

Sxty bucks won't even cover the Refs PTSD treatment.

For any staffing problem the question should be, "Can I get a qualified person if I paid them $500 per hour?" If the answer is yes then the issue is salary. Everything else is rhetoric.

quote:

For any staffing problem the question should be, "Can I get a qualified person if I paid them $500 per hour?" If the answer is yes then the issue is salary. Everything else is rhetoric.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Really? For some people it is not about the money.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:

quote:

For any staffing problem the question should be, "Can I get a qualified person if I paid them $500 per hour?" If the answer is yes then the issue is salary. Everything else is rhetoric.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Really? For some people it is not about the money.

I think that's the point.

If you can't find someone to do it for $500 an hour, then the issue isn't salary, the issue is something else.

If you can find someone to do it for $500 an hour, then there's a number between what you are paying them now and $501 that would resolve the issue.

Never was a Business major.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
$60 for High School are you serious??

I was a youth league soccer ref while I was in middle school and I got paid $30 a game. That was nearly 25 years ago.

At 3% inflation, that translates to $62.81. Although, it sounds like they’re looking for adults not middle schoolers.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
$60 for High School are you serious??

I was a youth league soccer ref while I was in middle school and I got paid $30 a game. That was nearly 25 years ago.

At 3% inflation, that translates to $62.81. Although, it sounds like they’re looking for adults not middle schoolers.

Part of my point.
There is a huge difference between youth elementary school soccer and High School varsity sports.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Never was a Business major.

No worries.

With anything you'll always find people who will do it because they love it or have altruistic tendencies. The question becomes, "Are there enough people who will work for less money to satisfy market demand"

For something like a Little League coach the answer might be yes, there are enough people out there who love baseball and are willing to give up nights and weekends to teach it. And the shooting industry benefits heavily from people willing to volunteer their time to coach, teach, and assist.

For something like a high school math or science teacher the answer might be "no" because as much as someone may love teaching, a $50,000 a year salary might be half of their market rate. So while there are some people willing to work for less than market rate for their skills because they love teaching, there's not enough people like that to satisfy the demand. If you raise the salary to an abstractly high number like $500 an hour and the supply problem is solved then you know the issue was salary.

The hard part is finding the number between "free"and $500 an hour.

It’s not just the pay, folks.

To varying degrees, this problem is also getting worse in all amateur sports because of the constant verbal abuse, occasional physical contact (such as pushing, jabbing fingers into the chest), and increasing numbers of documented assaults, both inside the venues and outside in the parking lots. It’s coming from coaches, players, and parents—-mostly parents.

Until the organizations and school systems running the sports programs do their part, we will continue to see fewer sports officials risk their safety.

quote:

Originally posted by caneau:
If you raise the salary to an abstractly high number like $500 an hour and the supply problem is solved then you know the issue was salary.

Conversely, if the price is low enough, anything will sell.

Q: "Why won't the house on the corner sell?"
A: "The price is too high."

Just don’t raise taxes for this nonsense.

quote:

Originally posted by snoris:
It’s not just the pay, folks.

To varying degrees, this problem is also getting worse in all amateur sports because of the constant verbal abuse, occasional physical contact (such as pushing, jabbing fingers into the chest), and increasing numbers of documented assaults, both inside the venues and outside in the parking lots. It’s coming from coaches, players, and parents—-mostly parents.

Until the organizations and school systems running the sports programs do their part, we will continue to see fewer sports officials risk their safety.

People get abused, kicked, punched, and generally treated poorly all the time at work. It happens to police officers, members of the military (they even get shot at!), MMA fighters and boxers, and a host of other professions. But it's pay or something else of value that incentivizes these people to work. And very often pay can make up for whatever else is of value.

If they offered refs $1000 per game they would end their shortage overnight.

Montana doesn't want to pay a person with a skill a market wage for that skill, and is pouting about it. Cry me a river of basic economic tears.

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Never was a Business major.


No worries.[/quote]

I appreciate your insight. I probablby would have done better financially if I had taken some business courses. Thanks