L.A. Times on N.B.A. Labor: "One Major Sports Labor Deal Down, One To Go."
The NFL celebrated the settlement of its ugly off-season labor dispute with the opening of training camps today and a frantic rush of news about imminent player transactions. Elsewhere in the major American sports universe, the L.A. Times reported that the "NBA's lockout of its players continued Tuesday with no progress in sight." From the article about the league's prospects for labor peace:
"If there's one thing us labor lawyers know -- and the public will see in this [NBA] case -- there's nothing like the prospect of deadlines, in this case, missing games, that forces action," said Seth Borden, a partner in employment and labor law for the Washington, D.C.-based firm McKenna Long and Aldridge.
The NBA regular season isn't scheduled to begin until Nov. 1, so expect a slow summer.
Representatives from both sides -- but not NBA Commissioner David Stern or union head Billy Hunter – are to meet soon for their annually scheduled discussion about the past season's audited financial reports for all 30 teams. The next labor negotiating session is likely to take place in early August.
That too may be another differentiating factor between the NFL's and NBA's disputes. In the NFL negotiations, the players repeatedly expressed distrust and frustration insofar as the NFL refused to share extensive financial information during collective bargaining negotiations. Generally speaking, labor law does not require an employer to "open the books" unless the employer attempts to justify its bargaining positions by claiming inability to pay. That refusal certainly seemed to exacerbate the lack of trust between the parties in the NFL negotiations -- which may have undermined their efforts to reach agreements earlier on. In the NBA dispute, the league's owners have expressly claimed financial losses force them to pursue concessions. Accordingly, they appear to be in the process of sharing financial data with the NBPA -- the players' union.
Still, as I mentioned in the piece above, it looks right now like it will be an even longer, more frustrating off-season for NBA fans hoping to celebrate the end of a lockout, like NFL fans everywhere are doing today.
More information and resources:
- "What the NFL Labor Dispute Means for the NBA Lockout" -- Huffington Post
- "Challenge in NBA Lockout is Owners, Players Infighting" -- MSNBC / ProBasketballTalk
- "Resolution of NFL Lockout Bodes Poorly for NBA Players in Their Labor Battle" -- Forbes
