Ali EmmottOL 318 Employee/Labor Relations

Labor Unions

In the National Hockey League (NHL)

And the National Hockey Players Association (NHPA)

Labor unions are most commonly fabricated out of unfair working conditions

and inadequate wages. Although today we often forget about our favorite

millionaire athletes of America’s favorite sports leagues, which at one time have

been victims of tyrannical bosses, harsh expectations and unbalanced wages. In the

past non-unionized athletes were treated as pieces of property with no rights to

pensions, or healthcare benefits. Just because professional athletics have affluent

incomes but don’t wear a shirt and tie or have a 9 to 5 schedule does not justify for

unfair working conditions or unfair labor practices. It took players to become brave

enough to stand up and demand a fair share of the revenues that their top-talent

provided, leading into creating labor unions in professional sports.(Macklon, July)

A process that place with having a labor union is called collective bargaining,

whereby unions and management negotiate and administer labor agreements.

Collective bargaining agreements made by labor unions in pro sports provides

benefits, pensions, regulations in players contracts, and various terms and

conditions that provide fair labor practices for both the players and owners of the

teams.(Witney & Sloane, 2010)

The National Hockey League known as the NHL, is a joint enterprise

organized as a not-for-profit unincorporated association which is recognized as the

sole and exclusive bargaining representative for the present and future Clubs of the

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NHL. The National Hockey League Players Association known as NHLPA is

recognized as the sole and exclusive bargaining representative of present and future

Players in the NHL. (NHL, 2012)

The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) is the union for

professional hockey players in the National Hockey League (NHL). Established in

1967, the union negotiates and enforces fair terms and conditions of employment

for NHL players. (Inside NHLPA , 2013)The NHLPA’s principal role is to represent

the players of the National Hockey League and to guarantee that their rights as

players are upheld under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

(National Hockey League Player's Assocication)

In 1967 just previous to the formation of the National Hockey Players

Association, it was rumored that players averaged only about $10,000 to $15,000

per year, with no pension or healthcare plants. If a player missed a game due to

injury, illness, or personal reasons they were not paid. Many professional hockey

athletes before 1967 were taken advantage of and deprived of benefits and general

respect from team owners.

June 29th 2012 began the bargaining between the players association and the

NHL. Management’s initial proposal would reduce players’ share of hockey-related

revenue from 57 percent to only 46 percent. (Press, 2013) Soon after the

disagreement broke out and controversy arose the 2012 NHL lockout went into full

affect. Last September 16, 2012, at midnight the previous collective bargaining

agreement had expired and by 2:30 AM Bill Daly the NHL deputy commissioner

declared, “A lockout was formally implemented”. The lockout lasted 113 days and

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ended on January 6, 2013. The final outcome was players will accept 53% with

increased revenue sharing.

Last January 12th, 2013 the National Hockey League and the National Hockey

League Players’ Association signed a memorandum of understanding reflecting

terms of a new to-year Collective Bargaining Agreement. (NHLPA Staff, 2013) The

wide-ranging Agreement includes an economic system under which hockey related

revenues (HRR) will be shared fifty-fifty between owners and the players. The

agreement also includes terms that limit the length of individual player contracts to

seven years and eight years when a team is re-signing its own player. Also regulates

the compensation structure, year-to-year variability and defining minimum value.

This new agreement is the longest in League history, additionally features a

new defined benefit pension plan for the Players; enhanced revenue sharing among

the clubs; creation of a Revenue Sharing Oversight Committee, on which the Union

will participate; creation of an Industry Growth Fund, designed to make long-term

improvements in the revenue-generating potential of low-grossing Clubs; the ability

of Clubs to retain a certain amount of salary in Player trades; a Player playoff prize

pool that doubles in size to $13 million in Year 1, rising to $17 million for 2020/21

and 2021/22, and the creation of an Owner-Player Relations Committee – one of

several joint initiatives not present in the previous Agreement.(NHLPA Staff, 2013)

Prior to the agreement there were several controversial issues that lingered

until the final movement of making the deal final. Those issues being a pension plan

for the players, the salary cap for the 2013-2014 season, the length of the Collective

Bargaining Agreement and individual contract term length and structure. The

Ali EmmottOL 318 Employee/Labor Relations

newest agreement is a ten-year settlement but it gives either party a chance to opt

out of the contract after year eight. That means until at least 2020 the NHL will have

labor peace but leaves plenty of room for issues to emerge and challenge the

Collective Bargaining Agreement. Although the players wanted a shorter term both

sides could understand the need for long-term stability. The league had already

suspended play three times in the last eighteen years because of labor disputes;

therefore a clear agreement both sides would favor was a necessity.

Ali EmmottOL 318 Employee/Labor Relations

Works Cited

Inside NHLPA . (2013). Retrieved from National Hockey League Players' Association: http://www.nhlpa.com/inside-nhlpa

Macklon, M. (July, 5 2011). The Rise Od Labor Unions In Pro Sports . Retrieved from Investopedia : http://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0711/the-rise-of-labor-unions-in-pro-sports.aspx

National Hockey League Player's Assocication. (n.d.). Retrieved 2013, from NHL Alumni : http://www.nhlalumni.net/national-hockey-league-players-association

NHL. (2012, September16). Collective Bargaining Agreement. Retrieved 2013, from NHL.com.

NHLPA Staff. (2013, January 2013). NHL, NHLPA sign Collective Bargaining Agreement. Retrieved 2013, from Nhlpa.com: http://www.nhlpa.com/news/nhl-nhlpa-sign-collective-bargaining-agreement

PHPA-Abour Site. (n.d.). Retrieved from Professional hockey players association: http://www.phpa.com/index.php/site/about

Press, T. A. (2013, January 6). NHL Lockout Timeline: From The Start Of Bargaining To Tentative Agreement Being Reached. Retrieved 2013, from Huffington post : http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/06/nhl-labor-timeline_n_2420731.html

Witney, F., & Sloane, A. A. (2010). Labor Relations. (Thirttenth, Ed.) Prentice Hall .