LHSAA principals vote to increase pay for high school game officials in all sports
Louisiana high school game officials will receive a pay boost after a vote by the state’s principals Friday at the LHSAA convention in Baton Rouge.
Officiating crews in all sports except baseball will see a $10 per game increase, while baseball umpires will get $4 in additional pay per game.
“That’s a good thing that we hope will help us retain some of the older officials we have as well as encourage younger folks to begin officiating,” said Mike Thibodeaux, the assigning secretary for Northwest Louisiana football officials.
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Football officials will see an increase from $90 to $100 plus $10 for in-town travel, giving them $110 per game. Baseball umpires will now earn $94, including their travel stipend.
The new structure is set for implementation this fall with football and volleyball.
“Mr. (Eddie) Bonine and Lee Sanders (LHSAA supervisor of officials) distributed a video showing we were behind in pay based on other associations across the South,” Thibodeaux said. “The measure that passed stipulates that the pay will be reviewed every two years and if we’re below average, an increase of up to $10 can be added.”
Thibodeaux said the average age of the state’s football officials is around 50.
“It’s a great way to supplement your income. If someone umpires baseball, they can bring in as much as $500 extra per week for 10 weeks,” he said.
In football, six-person crews work games on the state level, plus two people operating the clocks. The Shreveport area uses 140 to 160 officials on a typical football Friday night.
Jimmy Watson covers Shreveport-Bossier area sports. Email him at jwatson@shreveporttimes.com and follow him on Twitter @JimmyWatson6.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: LHSAA sports game officials to get pay raise after principals vote
