NFL Labor Issues - Negotiating a New NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement
On March 4, 2011, the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL owners and the NFL Players' Union is set to expire, and the two sides seem nowhere close to reaching a new agreement. In fact, the ongoing labor dispute threatens part, if not all of the 2011 NFL season.
To put things in their simplest form, the owners want the players to accept a smaller percentage of total revenues in the next agreement because, as the owners claim, economic conditions have taken their toll on their ability to make a profit.
To this the players have responded by asking the owners to open their books and show the world how much they are really struggling.
The owners, however, have declined to do just that.
There are other issues at play here as well, of course, like the owners' desire to expand to an 18-game schedule and to impose a rookie wage scale.
But for the most part, though, the biggest issue is how the revenue pie will be split going forward.
Latest Developments
-- In 2009, the owners voted unanimously to opt out of the current collective bargaining agreement following the 2010 season instead of allowing it to run through 2013. Having taken that approach, they have set the stage for a work stoppage that could lead to a lockout as early as March 4, 2011, when the contract officially expires.
Background
In 2006, then NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue, who was on the verge of retirement, helped push through an agreement that many thought was favorable to the players. Many thought after the fact that Tagliabue pushed for the deal simply because he didn't want a drawn out labor dispute to cloud his legacy of ruling over the league at a time of unprecedented growth.
In the long run, though, it may have done more harm than good as the owners are now trying to take back some of what they surrendered the last time around. And, it comes as no surprise the players are hesitant to do just that without concessions in other areas by the owners.
Further complicating things is the owners' inability to agree among themselves on the topic of revenue sharing. Teams have been sharing some revenues like box-office receipts and TV money for some time, but some would like to see that system include other revenue streams like luxury boxes. Until the owners can come to a consensus on the matter, though, it will be difficult to hammer out an agreement with the union.
To put things in their simplest form, the owners want the players to accept a smaller percentage of total revenues in the next agreement because, as the owners claim, economic conditions have taken their toll on their ability to make a profit.
To this the players have responded by asking the owners to open their books and show the world how much they are really struggling.
The owners, however, have declined to do just that.
There are other issues at play here as well, of course, like the owners' desire to expand to an 18-game schedule and to impose a rookie wage scale.
But for the most part, though, the biggest issue is how the revenue pie will be split going forward.
Latest Developments
-- In 2009, the owners voted unanimously to opt out of the current collective bargaining agreement following the 2010 season instead of allowing it to run through 2013. Having taken that approach, they have set the stage for a work stoppage that could lead to a lockout as early as March 4, 2011, when the contract officially expires.
Background
In 2006, then NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue, who was on the verge of retirement, helped push through an agreement that many thought was favorable to the players. Many thought after the fact that Tagliabue pushed for the deal simply because he didn't want a drawn out labor dispute to cloud his legacy of ruling over the league at a time of unprecedented growth.
In the long run, though, it may have done more harm than good as the owners are now trying to take back some of what they surrendered the last time around. And, it comes as no surprise the players are hesitant to do just that without concessions in other areas by the owners.
Further complicating things is the owners' inability to agree among themselves on the topic of revenue sharing. Teams have been sharing some revenues like box-office receipts and TV money for some time, but some would like to see that system include other revenue streams like luxury boxes. Until the owners can come to a consensus on the matter, though, it will be difficult to hammer out an agreement with the union.
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