Recoverable or non-recoverable draw for new sellers in a 90-day sales cycle?

We are a commercial flooring and fit-out supplier in Australia with 38 sellers in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Mix is 60/40. New sellers currently get a recoverable draw for six months, meaning we advance their target commission and recover it from later earnings.

Three recent hires finished the draw period owing between 9,000 and 14,000 dollars. Two of them resigned, and we wrote off the balances. The third is paying it back and is, understandably, miserable.

I am inclined to switch to a non-recoverable draw of three months, but the managing director sees that as free money. What do others in project-based sales do, and has anyone found a middle course?