Jockeys to receive 'significant' 12 per cent pay rise next week

Jockeys’ pay will increase by nearly 12 per cent from next week after an agreement was struck between the Professional Jockeys Association (PJA) and the Racehorse Owners Association (ROA).

Flat jockeys will receive a £15 rise per ride to £142.90 from April 1, an 11.7 per cent increase, while jump jockeys will be paid £194.63 for each mount they take, an increase of £20 per ride (11.5 per cent).

Dale Gibson, the PJA’s director of racing, expressed his pleasure at the “significant” pay increase at a time of rising costs, while Charlie Liverton, ROA chief executive, said the owners’ organisation was prioritising “the welfare of participants across the sport” with incomes for riders towards the bottom end of the industry “historically low”.

“It’s a very satisfactory increase,” Gibson said. “We went for £20 for National Hunt jockeys and £15 on the Flat, so it’s a significant increase, but there have been significant cost increases in the last six to nine months.”

Both sides agreed not to increase rider pay at the annual negotiations two years ago, instead agreeing to a rise in the non-runner fee for riders to 50 per cent of their riding fee, while last year Gibson says the rise amounted to “a 0.6 per cent increase” with uncertainty remaining due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In an email to ROA members, Liverton emphasised the recent rises in inflation and the increasing cost of fuel as part of the reasons for agreeing to boost the riding fee for 2022 with jockeys “suffering a significant real-terms depreciation in income”. He also confirmed the non-runner fee would remain at 50 per cent of the normal riding fee.

“As the ROA continues to prioritise the welfare of participants across the sport, it was felt that action was required immediately with average and lower-quartile jockey incomes remaining historically low,” he said. “For example, median gross earnings in the lower quartile of National Hunt jockeys are just £4,029 a year after costs and £8,500 for a Flat jockey.”

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