The Rugby League Players Association have outlined their list of demands as negotiations over the next collective bargaining agreement continue.
The agreement, which is due to come into force next year and will run until the end of the current TV broadcasting agreement - at the end of 2027 - is yet to be signed.
The fact there has been no signing off yet has been criticised by some, including Manly's Andrew Davey who blamed a lack of knowledge over the salary cap for 2023 as the key reason he has been unable to land a new deal as yet.
"It's frustrating that it has taken this long," Davey told the media in mid-August.
"It's a lot of things. A lot of clubs don't know where they are at because the CBA (collective bargaining agreement) still hasn't been finished.
"That's frustrating for the clubs, trying to get their roster together, but also for players who haven't got a contract signed.
"Like it's mid-August. What are we doing?"
According to The Daily Telegraph however, the final demands from the RLPA have been confirmed.
Among them is an increase to the salary cap, moving to $10.4 million in 2023, and then with an increase of $400,000 per year for the remainder of the deal for the top 30 players. It would mean the cap goes to around $12.4 million by the end of the deal.
There would also be an allowance of $500,000 in the salary cap for long-serving and locally-developed players, essentially taking the 2023 cap to $10.9 million. The current allowance for this is only $200,000 per season.
The minimum wage for male players in the top 30 would also be increased to $150,000, while women would receive at least $30,000.
The demands also state that $650,000 would be set aside for a ten-player supplementary list outside of each club's top 30, while funds of $120 million and $50 million respectively will be set up for the women's game and medical support, hardship and transition to retirement for past players.
All up, the RLPA want players to hold 47.8 per cent of total NRL revenue across both the men's and women's game.
RLPA boss Clint Newton explained the increase of minimum wage to attempt to lose less talent to the game.
“We are seeing players leave the game at a greater rate than we ever have before — the average career span is four years,” Newton told the publication.
“We have seen that consistently decline. We are also seeing the average age of players decline. We are losing this experience out of our game and we need to make sure we are doing everything we can to keep people in the game.
“What the players want to do is up the minimum wage and training wages, the introduction of match fees and a supplementary playing list to make sure we’re supporting players from the bottom up.
“The best players will be rewarded and remunerated but we’re trying to ensure the players at the bottom are looked after as well.”
The collective bargaining agreement is due to be signed in the coming months.