2 Questions for FED umpires

[DG]

Originally Posted by Lawrence.Dorsey

DG,

I only work baseball also but the the insurance fee ($21) is only paid once during a registration year. The insurance only covers you for NCHSAA games (any sport). We also pay $50 to our booking agent. I know another association who get paid by their assignor (assignor gets the check from the school then pays umpires). That assignor takes 1 game check per sport as a booking fee. That equals $60 for a varsity baseball umpire.

Lawrence

I was once told it covered me all year, even for non-NCHSAA events. However, it is accident insurance and I carry separate accident/liability insurance for officials that surely covers me for any game.

[fitump56]

Originally Posted by canadaump6

I've seen a lot of talk on here about FED umpiring qualification tests and am guessing this is the time of year when you have to write qualification exams. I am curious to know if your association pays the cost of your examination/clinic.

Not any I know becuz it goes to the State High School ASSn.

Around here, it costs $45 to write our level 3 qualification exam, and that money comes out of our own pockets. I have talked to my umpire in chief about asking the league to pay our fees. He says that every year he asks them about reimbursing us, but they never email him back. What do you think should be the next step?

ASSuming he's not getting a kickback, forget it.

My other question is how much money FED pays per game. Around here for doing 16-18 year old All Star, we make $38 for doing plate and $30 for doing bases (either 7 or 9 inning games depending on if it's AA or AAA). I would guess it is about the same level of ball as high school varsity. How do we compare to high school umpiring associations in terms of salaries and exam fees?

More like $55 - $65 regardless of plate-base but the travel distances in Atlanta can be absurd. Then pay is at the end of season.

Which is why I refuse to do HS FED ball.

[ptmac]

Perhaps a fuller explanation of the situation in Ontario and a quick overview of the various levels of umpiring in Canada may be helpful.

In Canada, there are five levels 1 – 5 (with levels 4 & 5 broken down into subgroups). Levels 1 & 2 are primarily for beginning and junior level umpires. Starting with 2 years in Level 1 and 3 years in level 2, an individual qualifies for Level 3. These levels are operated and managed on a provincial level (think in terms of state/regional). Level 3 umpires can do any level of baseball up to Provincial Championships. Level 4 umpires in Canada (there were a total of 148 in 2006), are nationally certified to umpire in National Championships. They also provide the backbone of umpire improvement in the country. Many if not most have attended either Harry or Jim's 5 week clinics, and some have been MiLB umpires. Level 5 umpires are internationally certified, and Canada has provided many umpires in International competition including Pan-Am Games, World Junior Championships and Olympic competition (Canada provided one of the four umpires at the Gold Medal Game in Athens and will be represented in the Bejing games this summer.

Ontario recognizes that a majority of Level 3 umpires have been doing so for a number of years, and requiring an annual clinic attendance would be diluting the available clinicians (there are 46 in the province) among other reasons. Local Associations have been encouraged to provide teaching/mentoring of Level 3 umpires on a local basis, and direct contact with clinicians are available. Each year, Level 3 umpires take an exam requiring a 76% mark to maintain their status. Every 3 years (2008 is a clinic year), there is a ‘superclinic’, where a full day including in-class, on-field and plate work is conducted. Umpires are charged $45 each year including superclinic years. Participants are provided with learning materials including workbooks, video materials, DVD’s and plate work recordings.

This fee also includes insurance each year - health as well as liability...

Using ONE game fee at the HS level for certification should not be a big burden on any umpire, and it is deductible from game fees for tax purposes…… Local umpiring and baseball associations are not (at least in Ontario) massively funded and tend to operate on a shoestring basis. In other words, get over it!

Game fees are locally set here and depending on age group, level of play and competency of umpire can be really quite lucrative.

[bossman72]

Originally Posted by MadCityRef

$45 is outrageous whether taking or writing it.

Mind you that's 45 Canadian dollars.


But while we're at it. My state dues are $30 ($25 if you pay them early). My chapter dues are $50 which is ridiculous. They use most of that to stipend the assignor and other officers, when in actuality, the schools should be paying that money. All the other associations around my area don't pay their board members with the dues except mine. Sheesh.

[canadaump6]

I wasn't referring to the Superclinic years, as our league reimburses us for those. I am referring to the years where we have to fork over $45 to write an exam.

This fee also includes insurance each year - health as well as liability...

This is the first I have heard about the fee including insurance. I found nothing about it on the Baseball Ontario website, but I probably overlooked something again.

Using ONE game fee at the HS level for certification should not be a big burden on any umpire, and it is deductible from game fees for tax purposes…… Local umpiring and baseball associations are not (at least in Ontario) massively funded and tend to operate on a shoestring basis. In other words, get over it!

It is not really the money that is the issue, although $45 does cost almost 2 game fees around here. It is the principle of having to pay to serve your association that I strongly dislike. One would think that if they wanted level 3 umpires, they would pay their examination fees every year. Most workplaces pay their employees to take training, not the other way around. From the looks of things, it seems as though others are faced with the same issue.

[ptmac]

Originally Posted by canadaump6

I wasn't referring to the Superclinic years, as our league reimburses us for those. I am referring to the years where we have to fork over $45 to write an exam..

Think of it this way - You're paying $135 for three years including three exams and one superclinic. I don't understand why your 'league' would reimburse you for this. Other centers reimburse upon completion of a certain number of games umpired....but only if you umpire exclusively for them. I'm not aware of any area in at least Southern Ontario where a L3 umpire would leaguework exclusively for any association

Originally Posted by canadaump6

This is the first I have heard about the fee including insurance. I found nothing about it on the Baseball Ontario website, but I probably overlooked something again...

If your association pays the fee, any insurance payments to you for injury etc are taxable. If you pay the fee (not reimbursed), they are non-taxable. This insurance has been part of the certification process for at least 15 years....

Originally Posted by canadaump6

It is not really the money that is the issue, although $45 does cost almost 2 game fees around here. It is the principle of having to pay to serve your association that I strongly dislike. One would think that if they wanted level 3 umpires, they would pay their examination fees every year. Most workplaces pay their employees to take training, not the other way around. From the looks of things, it seems as though others are faced with the same issue.

I don't know about you, but I'm not an employee of any association. I umpire for a number of different leagues etc - why would one pay and another not? The real issue is - do you want to be a top quality umpire or not? In the larger scheme of things, an exam/certification/association fee is the least costly thing I do in umpiring - and there's a whole host of things that deserve more of my energy than that.

[MadCityRef]

Originally Posted by bossman72

Mind you that's 45 Canadian dollars.

CN dollar is 'bout even to US these days.

[tiger49]

Thanks ptmac for speaking up...$45 for an 8 hour course (with lunch included) is a bargin. Same goes for the 3-day Level 4 at about $300. With meals and rooms included.