The Other Labor Showdowns

While the nation is fixated on the battle of Wisconsin, there is another labor showdown taking place which has long term implications for their respective organizations. The NFL and NBA currently facing potent lockouts of its players as its own collective bargaining agreements have expired . Both leagues like all other professional sports have experienced skyrocketing salaries over the past 15 years. The slumping economy, coupled with heavy debt from newly constructed sports venues has left the owners in a conundrum. They must convince the NFLPA to accept a haircut on the 65% of revenues it currently receives under the expiring collective bargaining agreement. Thus far a pay cut has been about as well received as playing without helmets. The NBA owners with 23 of its 30 teams losing money wants a larger cut of the 4 billion dollars in league revenue which is currently split in favor of the players.

All the major sports teams-the NFL, NBA, NHL and Major league baseball, have all suffered through strikes, and or lockouts over the past twenty years. The entire NHL season of 2004-2005 was lost to a lockout. It is my feeling that the professional sports unions need to look at the Steel and auto industries to see their future. Player salaries have shot out of the park since the age of the CBA. The average NFL salary is $1.7 mm, Major league baseball $3.2mm, NHL about $1.5mm and the the highest salary in all of professional sports goes to the NBA- a whopping $5.5mm! Rising ticket prices and a country in recession cannot sustain the status quo. The very harsh reality is that the proverbial well is running dry. Everyone is running out of money and the unions are the last to catch on. A word of advice to the players unions: Study the history of your respective sports and understand what your unions have done to the quality of the game and how it has affected the average fan- you remember,the one's who pay your inflated salaries? If you don't have time to study the history of your sports, just take a look at Detroit the next time you're in town.

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