The Coming Labor War in the NFL
When Rush Limbaugh was unceremoniously dumped in his efforts to secure a minority share of the St. Louis Rams, he may have been little more than collateral damage in a brewing collision between NFL owners and the NFL Players Association. After the union raised objections, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell squashed Limbaugh like a waterbug. Given the potential conflict brewing between NFL management and labor, Rush was a public relations disaster Goodell could hardly afford.
The collective bargaining agreement is due to expire at the end of the 2010 season and all signs are that an era of labor/management partnership is not at hand. As Sports Illustrated senior writer Peter King wrote this week, “It's going to get ugly. There's better than a 50-percent chance, I believe, of some work stoppage in 2011, as incredibly golden-goose-killing as that sounds.”
The idea of a labor stoppage could revive a rack of memories the owners want best buried. During the 1980s, the NFL was the site of two of the most bitter sports strikes/lockouts in history. In 1987, when “scab football” was played by “the replacements” in front of half empty stadiums, locked out players in some NFL cities brought rifles to their picket lines. In others, they physically assaulted the scab players that attempted to break the lines. In today’s 24-hour sports media environment, the idea of round-the-clock picket line drama, is nothing the owners want.
The negotiations also occur within the context of a new study showing that retired NFL players suffer from advanced Alzheimer’s disease and other brain trauma at five times the national rate among men over 50. For men under 50, the number is 19 times the national rate. Congress held hearings in the subject last week and both the union and the owners are going to be pressed to explain why so little has been done for so long. For years the owners have spoken about concussions the way the tobacco industry used to bleat about lung cancer. They would say “research has not shown” that football causes the attendant brain injuries. Those days are done. Both the union and owners will be pressed to address this during the upcoming negotiations.
But that will require a spirit of cooperation that may not exist as negotiations are brought to a boil. The issues that separate them seem minor: NFLPA President Smith and the union want more financial transparency. The owners want to dial back concessions they made in the last CBA and get a larger share of the revenue back.
But the two main sources of tension aren’t on the bargaining table: The first is the economy. The NFL, long thought to be recession proof is feeling the squeeze. In the best of times, football is a blue-collar game at white-collar prices. But this year attendance has dropped, in no small part because ticket prices remain prohibitive even amidst the crisis. A family of four, purchasing modest concessions, will now pay over $400. The result is that empty seats dot stadiums around the country. This leads to “blackouts” where games aren’t broadcast in local markets. In 2008, only nine games were blacked out during the entire season. In 2009 Jacksonville alone has already announced that they will have to blackout eight. The league will want to cut costs in this climate and the union will feel a need to hold the line. The golden goose has lost a bit of its luster.
It’s worth noting that the NFL is only highest profile example of the economic crisis pervading the world of sports. The National Football League's red-headed stepchild, the Arena Football League, had to cancel its last season. In 2009, 21 of the 30 Major League Baseball teams saw attendance drops. The Ladies Professional Golf Association has seen their corporate sponsorships flee and the Women’s National Basketball Association eliminated roster spots in preparation for a downturn.,
The National Basketball Association in particular has looked vulnerable in the current climate. The league took out a $175 million line of credit to aid financially failing teams even though Commissioner David Stern tried to spin this as a sign of the league's health, which was a little bit sad. The NBA also has contract negotiations after the 2010 season which could make the NFL battle look tepid by comparison. It’s this dire economy which stands as the primary reason labor peace won’t be coming to the NFL.
While the dire economy is the primary reason to bet against labor peace in the NFL, another good one is new Players Association president DeMaurice Smith. The NFLPA is generally seen as the weakest of the sports unions because it’s the only league without guaranteed contracts. Smith, a connected Capitol Hill lawyer, was elected in March following the sudden death of Gene Upshaw, wants to show that despite not being a former player he will be strong for his players. Upon assuming leadership he said, “There isn’t a day where I don’t hope for peace, but at the same time, there isn’t a day where we won’t prepare for war.”
It’s this combative stance, along with declining revenues that signal to many an NFL watcher that the golden goose might soon be cooked.
11 Reader Comments | Add a comment
Dave, how are players packing rifles and physically assaulting scab players a stain on the owners and not the players/union? This seems to be a pretty desperate connection on your part.
... that 50 years ago nobody except the owners were making any money and now everybody is *losing* money -- but at least both parties have achieved tremendous monetary gains over the last 20 years, unlike most Americans.
Now these times are changing -- and already have for most of us who have lost our jobs or have had our salaries stagnate. But according to Dave and his Leftist ilk, the "unions" can turn back the clock, keeping the players' lifestyles in the way they are accustomed, no matter if owners (GM anyone?) are losing their shirts. And it's WAY worse for owners in the other 3 major leagues right now than the NFL, where only Russian plutocrats are buying in.
As a result, packing heat and physically assaulting other people who are just trying to make a living -- like scab players, or pretty much ANY non-unionized worker competing with a union -- is a-ok in Dave's Lefty playbook.
Along the same lines, it's really a joke that we are supposed to feel bad for brain-damaged players who willingly sign up to play a brutal sport. I doubt Dave is shedding any tears for the danger inherent in joining Armed Forces, the recruits of which get paid a fair bit less than NFL players -- but I guess they get to see the world.
As Malcolm Gladwell writes in his fair article about brain injuries in the New Yorker last month -- there really are no easy answers, as long as we like to watch pro football. But in Dave's socialist circle of Nation readers, the answers are easy to come by if you only look to the Left. If only the union would argue for a switch to flag football, then nobody'd get hurt!
JJ - Players have made money in football precisely because they have a union. If other industries hadn't let their union rights be bargained away, we wouldn't be a country of such haves and have-nots today. Gee, I wonder what side of that equation JJ is on.
Also, JJ - you are a ho for edge of sports, always on and always postin' which is kind of funny.
Does anyone have a good overview of what sort of concessions the Union is trying to get? From Dave's article, it seems that any outcome is going to see the total money going to both players and ownership drop, possibly in order to reduce ticket levels to the point that signing up for season passes doesn't raise bankruptcy concerns (I'm looking at you, Dan Snyder, you heartless bastard). In this situation, it would seem to me that the Union would be looking to get other sorts of concessions in exchange for the paycuts, e.g. stronger guarantees about pay, higher minimum salary, pensions, ownership stakes, long term disability. . .
It should be interesting to see how this plays out. . . meantime I'll be planning on watching hockey on prime-time TV in 2011.
I hear you Sean. The main gong the union is hitting is "transparency" which is code for wanting to see the books. The owners are crying poor but no one really knows the truth on this.
As for 2011, don't forget hoops! I am jacked about the current season. It pains me, but I think Boston wins it all (I will cry now.)
This is one big game. Drive to the richest neighborhood in your city and tell me how bad they're struggling. Nothing is closed, everyone is out, eating at restaurants, buying things. I don't see where they've downgraded their taste in cars... It's still boom times for them. Our way of life in the post new deal America is at the mercy of the fight in organized labor. If they give up, forget it. It's a 2 class system. Good to see a high profile union rep putting up a fight. The new NFLPA prez is not going to budge until the owners show the books. Hopefully this starts a ripple effect amongst union reps across America.
Those who do the work should reap the benefits of the work. Nobody is working harder, in the NFL, than the players, and they should be making the money that they make, because if they weren't making it, you know who would be.
JJ - This isn't about "feeling bad" for the players because they're sustaining brain damage, but its about dealing with an important issue properly, which can EASILY be afforded by the league. You can't just dumb all of this down to "feeling bad." You know damn well it just ain't that simple.
One more thing.... when did anybody say that assault was "A-OK."? If you actually read what was written, you would realize that he said "the idea of round-the-clock picket line drama, is nothing the owners want." How does "The owners don't want this" turn into "This is A-OK" ?? It doesn't help your credibility when you put words in somebody's mouth. You just got caught red handed.
The analogy between the NFL owners and BIG Tobacco executives is sound. Owners buying yachts, while former players are left struggling with Alzheimers and the effects of head trauma is so American....
That's not really accurate as the responsibility to take care of the former players has been ignored by the owners and the NFLPA. It would take a relatively small amount of financial resources by both parties to try to make things right and it's just not happening. Very sad.
The players certainly have a right to strike, and are certainly lucky to have their college degrees to rely on as well as those off season jobs to help them survive a strike.
Or did I miss somrthing here?
Please tell me where I can read pure facts about the issues of both sides of the conflict. I understand some of the issues, but want a comprehensive listing of the issues. Also, can someone tell me if this is really about the issues or is it about control and/or power?
11 Reader Comments | Add a comment
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Dave Zirin is the author of the book: "Welcome to the Terrordome: The Pain, Politics and Promise of Sports" (Haymarket). You can receive his column Edge of Sports, every week by going to dave@edgeofsports.com.
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