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As CBA Expires, MLS Players Refrain From Strike For Time Being
The CBA expires at midnight with MLS and the players union still at an impasse.
Feb 25, 2010 10:29:00 PM
By Zac Lee Rigg
A sort of paralysis has crept into Major League Soccer. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement will expire at midnight on Thursday, ushering in, well, nothing.
Both the league and the MLS Players Union issued statements today acknowledging that the CBA will expire, but neither side opting for a strike or a lockout just yet. Players will continue preseason training for the time being.
Locked in closed-door negotiations for the better part of a year, the two sides couldn't come to an agreement before the original expiration date of Jan. 31. Two short-term extensions brought the deadline to Feb. 25 as discussions continued. However, on Friday, players blitzed the press, brandishing the menacing threat of a "work stoppage," citing a lack of cooperation by the league to budge on important player proposals.
The league soon followed suit, releasing contradictory statements and claiming to have offered to increase spending on players by $60 million over five years.
Still at odds over free agency and player rights, the two sides last met face-to-face on Monday.
"While we expect that negotiations with MLS will resume at some point, there simply hasn't been enough progress made in the negotiations to date to warrant an extension of the old agreement," said Bob Foose, executive director of the union. "We have advised our players to keep working for the time being, but as of Friday they will be doing so without a CBA. In the meantime, all options are being considered as the process continues. We are completely committed to forging real changes to the way MLS players are treated."
With clubs scattered across warmer climates including Spain, Arizona, and Florida, one possibility is that the players union will strike once more players have returned to their home towns. For its part, MLS seems to have no inclination to lock out the players.
“During the last year, Major League Soccer has been negotiating with the MLS Players Union on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. The current CBA expires today and the Players Union would not agree to a further extension,” read a league-issued statement.
“We have told the Players Union that the League does not plan to lock out the players and we are prepared to begin the season under the current CBA while we continue to bargain to reach agreement on a new CBA.
“We have listened to the issues raised by the MLS Players Union and the League has made detailed proposals that have addressed these issues, including in the areas of economics, guaranteed contracts, options and the ability of a player to move to another MLS Club if he is released by his current Club. These proposals, which represent substantial changes from the current CBA, will significantly increase our spending and provide substantially more rights to the players.”
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com's MLS page
Both the league and the MLS Players Union issued statements today acknowledging that the CBA will expire, but neither side opting for a strike or a lockout just yet. Players will continue preseason training for the time being.
Locked in closed-door negotiations for the better part of a year, the two sides couldn't come to an agreement before the original expiration date of Jan. 31. Two short-term extensions brought the deadline to Feb. 25 as discussions continued. However, on Friday, players blitzed the press, brandishing the menacing threat of a "work stoppage," citing a lack of cooperation by the league to budge on important player proposals.
The league soon followed suit, releasing contradictory statements and claiming to have offered to increase spending on players by $60 million over five years.
Still at odds over free agency and player rights, the two sides last met face-to-face on Monday.
"While we expect that negotiations with MLS will resume at some point, there simply hasn't been enough progress made in the negotiations to date to warrant an extension of the old agreement," said Bob Foose, executive director of the union. "We have advised our players to keep working for the time being, but as of Friday they will be doing so without a CBA. In the meantime, all options are being considered as the process continues. We are completely committed to forging real changes to the way MLS players are treated."
With clubs scattered across warmer climates including Spain, Arizona, and Florida, one possibility is that the players union will strike once more players have returned to their home towns. For its part, MLS seems to have no inclination to lock out the players.
“During the last year, Major League Soccer has been negotiating with the MLS Players Union on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. The current CBA expires today and the Players Union would not agree to a further extension,” read a league-issued statement.
“We have told the Players Union that the League does not plan to lock out the players and we are prepared to begin the season under the current CBA while we continue to bargain to reach agreement on a new CBA.
“We have listened to the issues raised by the MLS Players Union and the League has made detailed proposals that have addressed these issues, including in the areas of economics, guaranteed contracts, options and the ability of a player to move to another MLS Club if he is released by his current Club. These proposals, which represent substantial changes from the current CBA, will significantly increase our spending and provide substantially more rights to the players.”
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com's MLS page
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