What organizations can you get paid as a stroke/turn judge
Former Member
I was just wondering what swimming organizations can you get paid as a stroke and turn judge. I hear that you can but apparently, you don't as a USS stroke and turn judge.
Former Member
When I run a meet, I usually offer a nominal stipend ($25.00 or so) to our starter and stroke/turn judges. I think of it as gas money - some of them drive quite a distance to our meets. Some of them take it; some of them refuse to accept it; others donate it to their favorite swim teams.
I don't think they typically get paid for working at kids' meets.
If you're looking for a way to make money as an official, you'd better choose another sport!
operators of the electronic timing get paid sometimes. I volunteer to run the timing console for my granddaughter's team when they host a meet, but if a team doesn't have someone connected with the team to volunteer they have to hire someone. It is a little bit nerve racking the first few times you do it on your own, especially if it is a big rec league meet and the officials are running the heats really fast, but overall it isn't terribly difficult.
Our local high school and college pay the officials and meet ops folks for in-season meets, more for championships meets. Probably about $20 for 1 session, more for district/regional championships.
For our local USA Swimming meets once in a while the host team will hire meet ops (timing system or meet management computer) but the officials are always free. The timing/computer positions require training, experience and certification and not all meet hosts have somebody in-house. Also, a hospitality room is expected for coaches, officials, and other meet workers and usually serve both breakfast and lunch if the meet will run past 1 pm. For the state/section championships meets the officials might get an embroidered logo polo shirt plus a post-meet social.
In my area there is a shortage of qualified individuals both as officials (stroke & turn, starter, referee, timing judge) and on the timing platform (timing system, meet computer ops). Masters swimmers are in a unique position to give something back to the sport by helping out. Unlike new swim parents who may drop out of the sport in a year when their kids decide swimming's not their thing, the Masters already have a knowlege of the sport and may stay in it for enough years to develop expertise required for skilled positions.
Food, they pay me with food, that is when I can get away from the table long enough to get to the hospitality area!
One of our coaches used to run the timing system for money when they lived in Atlanta. Teams would hire them for their expertise since they did not have in house people. Our team just keeps training new parents as they come in to do this so we don't have this cost.
Our high school meets pay officials. It was a new concept for the swimming officials, but the reasoning was that the high schools pay officials for football, basketball, track, etc., and should pay swimming officials as well.
USS is mainly voluntary, maybe some gas money and the hospitality suite. Most USS officials tend to be involved parents (they do take there job seriously) etc. Some age group summer club leagues will pay if can't find enough volunteers. I used to be involved with Colorado H.S. Association of Swimming Officials (CASO) for about 10-years. They do pay for high school meets. Currently I think it's around $36+ 1.5 hour dual meets and more for longer format meets. Saturday championship formats can be up around $150+ for the day. I also have done some college level and it pays a little more then high school as standard dual meets are longer in college. In Colorado CASO is also the official organization for masters swim meet officiating and they are paid.
High school and college judges are paid by the state's high school activities group or the NCAA.
Don't know what the average wage is, but I never met a stroke judge or starter who made his or her living solely from it.
