Labor & Employment Law

NFL Players to Join State Federations

By James Parks

It happens too often. Workers become more productive, often risking serious injury on the job, and make the owners more money. But instead of sharing the wealth, the owners demand givebacks and threaten to shut down the company if the workers don?t agree.

The only difference this time is that the workers include such household names as Drew Brees, Ray Lewis, Peyton Manning and James Harrison?all stars of the National Football League. NFL team owners are threatening to lock out players next season, and  the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) is joining with the other workers in the stadiums and the rest of the union movement to fight management?s greed. Today, the NFLPA announced that its members will fully affiliate with all AFL-CIO state federations and the central labor councils where their NFL teams are based.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said:

This act of solidarity is the kind of action we need to confront the issues facing all working people, especially in these difficult economic times. For the players, the families whose jobs and financial security rely on the game and the millions of devoted fans, we hope that this unity helps move the NFL and NFLPA further towards a successful resolution to the current negotiations.

Help the NFLPA “Block the Lockout”  by signing its petition. The players want to play football and fans passionately want to see America?s most popular sport. If you want to see NFL games next season, sign the petition on Facebook here or on the NFLPA lockout page here.

The owners terminated the collective bargaining agreement two years ago because, they say, it isn?t working for them. But they refuse to provide audited financial information to explain what is wrong in a business that generated $9 billion in 2009 during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

The owners are demanding that the players give back $1 billion, although not one team has lost money. They also want players to pay for team travel and the cost of running practice facilities.

Not only are the players affected, but the jobs of more than 25,000 concession workers at stadiums across the country are threatened by the lockout, which would cost more then $140 million in revenue for each of the 32 NFL cities.

On top of that, the owners have threatened to make the players pay for their own health care in case of a lockout. As it is, management provides only five years of health care coverage after players retire. Players? NFL careers average only 3.4 years and many retire with a range of serious health problems. Not many people would argue that facing a 325-pound lineman running at full speed over and over could be dangerous to your health.

The NFLPA has long been a part of the union movement and players have often supported their working brothers and sisters. NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, who grew up in a union family, sits on the AFL-CIO Executive Council, as did his predecessor, the late Gene Upshaw.

NFL players also recently appeared at an IAM conference in Florida in support of NASA workers who were facing layoffs because of the end of the U.S. manned space program. They joined workers at the Avondale shipyard in New Orleans to help save their jobs and spoke at the AFL-CIO Youth Summit.

At the IAM conference, union President Thomas Buffenbarger said this about the players? struggle:

The circumstances may be different, but the need for workers to stick together is the same everywhere, whether it?s at NASA, at Delta Air Lines or the NFL.  

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on November 12, 2010 (boomark / email).