A $16 offer allowing Aussies to swap their home office for a day at the cricket has sparked a backlash from business leaders, who warn employees could be taking advantage of their bosses.
Cricket Victoria is encouraging fans to bring their laptops to Junction Oval in Melbourne and get their work done while watching the Sheffield Shield.
Its ‘work-from-the-shield’ package includes access to a function room, Wi-Fi and a free tea or coffee, with live cricket providing a tempting alternative to staring at the spare room wall.
But employer groups have delivered a blunt message to anyone planning to spend their working day following the action: take annual leave instead.
Australian Industry Group Victoria head Tim Piper said the promotion pushed flexible working too far.
‘Working from home doesn’t mean going to the AFL, doesn’t mean going to the cricket, doesn’t mean going to your local sports event,’ he told SmartCompany.
Cricket Victoria’s $16 ‘work-from-the-shield’ offer has drawn criticism from employer groups
People like this stock image fellow can bring their laptops to Junction Oval and work while watching Sheffield Shield cricket
‘It actually means working from home, and that means doing the work that’s expected of you.’
Piper, himself a cricket enthusiast, questioned whether fans could give their jobs the attention required while watching a match unfold.
‘I know that I can’t sit at home and watch a Test match and work, so trying to do that in a live session would be even more difficult,’ he told The Australian Financial Review.
‘I would be actively discouraging my employees from considering that they were working while at the cricket.’
Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry acting chief executive Amelia Bitsis was equally unconvinced.
‘Nice try, Cricket Victoria,’ she said.
‘People’s passion for cricket is such that it deserves their full attention. So does work. Our advice is to take the day off.’
Cricket Victoria chief executive Nick Cummins, however, argued the package offered fans a chance to combine their usual remote working arrangements with a day at the ground.
Cricket Victoria chief executive Nick Cummins described working while watching live cricket as ‘the Australian dream’
‘If people can work from home, why not work from the cricket?’ he told the AFR.
‘The package allows fans to complete their work while enjoying live cricket – that’s the Australian dream.’
The organisation has promoted Junction Oval as ‘the best office in the country’, with the $16 package costing just $6 more than standard admission.
And while business leaders might be sceptical, the idea has struck a chord online.
According to the AFR, the promotion generated record engagement for Cricket Victoria, attracting more than 2800 shares, 180 comments and 3000 likes.
The offer is available on Thursday and Friday during Victoria’s Sheffield Shield clash with South Australia at the St Kilda venue.
It is also scheduled to return when Victoria host NSW at Junction Oval in March.
The initiative follows a similar promotion by English county Surrey, which encouraged supporters to ‘work from Oval’ earlier this year.
Cricket Victoria hopes the promotion will bring more spectators through the gates for Sheffield Shield matches
For Cricket Victoria, the package is a chance to attract more spectators to a competition that can struggle to draw a crowd.
The AFR reported average attendance of about 850 people a day last year.
Even Piper acknowledged the marketing appeal, telling SmartCompany: ‘It’s a good idea, it’s a bit of a gimmick, but no more than that.’
His objection was to employees treating permission to work remotely as permission to spend the day at a sporting event.
‘Employers are happy to be flexible, but what they don’t want to be is taken advantage of,’ he said.
‘Some of these instances of people working from home from sports events is simply that it takes advantage of the largesse being provided by employers.’
The row comes amid a wider fight over Victoria’s proposed working-from-home laws.
Under the proposal, eligible employees would have the right to work from home two days a week, where reasonable.
SmartCompany reported the legislation had been referred to a parliamentary committee, with a report due on October 20 ahead of November’s state election.
Ai Group is among the business organisations opposing the changes.
Meanwhile, South Australian cricket fans already have access to some of the perks being promoted across the border.
A South Australian Cricket Association spokesman said that Sheffield Shield matches at Karen Rolton Oval and Adelaide Oval were free to attend and offered free Wi-Fi, with food and drinks available to buy.
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