Will MLS Players Strike? Labor Negotiations Down to the Wire
In 2010, the last time Major League Soccer faced a possible player strike as it negotiated a new collective bargaining agreement with its players, the two sides reached an agreement just five days ahead of the season. That was considered a thin margin at the time, but if they reach a resolution before First Kick this season—now just two days away—it will set a new standard in getting things done at the last minute.
That remains a big if. As it stands, MLS’s 20th season is set to get underway on Friday night, when the Los Angeles Galaxy host the Chicago Fire. The league has taken some significant steps in recent years, and is welcoming two new teams to the fold this year. One of them, Orlando City, has sold out its 60,000-seat stadium for its first ever home game, scheduled for Sunday. But the labor issue threatens to keep that game from even happening.
Boston.com detailed some of the central sticking points two weeks ago; chief among them has been players’ demand for, and the league’s resistance to, a free agency system within the league—the ability to choose their next teams after their contracts expire. It’s a right afforded to athletes in global soccer and in other American sports. It’s absent from MLS in part due to MLS’s complicated business structure, and the resultant cost control measures taken by the league at its onset 20 years ago. (More on all that here.) The two sides are diametrically opposed on this one; MLS credits its structure with helping it grow over the last 10 years while players say all the growth should lead to changes in that structure.
For the last several days, player representatives, league and union officials, and federal mediators have been locked in discussions in Washington, D.C., in hopes of reaching an agreement. Tuesday’s talks, according to multiplereports, stretched until 6 a.m. Wednesday morning. Two days shy of the season’s start—which has been seen as the deadline to avert a strike—things remain up in the air. The last 24 hours have been a bit of a whirlwind as some details about the progress of negotiations has seeped out.
There has been some movement on the free agency front, according to reports from ESPN and The Washington Post. An offer from owners, the Post reported, would give players who have spent 10 years with one team and who are at least 32 years old some semblance of free agency. If that doesn’t sound very rewarding for players, that’s because it wouldn’t be; under such a system, only one player in the league—Houston’s Brad Davis—would qualify for the right. Citing a source, VICE’s Jorge Arrangure reported the league had since advanced past that offer, at least meaning an idea that players were likely to laugh out of the room hadn’t come in this close to the deadline.
And ESPN followed up later, saying the offer on the table now is a system in which players who have been in the league for eight years, and who are over 28, would qualify for “the right to choose their next market.’’ This may sound more agreeable to players; while it’s a far cry from other leagues, both in global soccer and in American sports, it would constitute a major step for MLS’s players and their quest toward free agency, putting them in better position the next time the issue comes up. And there may even be some improving upon that.
However, ESPN’s report said another sticking point had emerged from that proposed compromise; MLS would want to cap players’ raises under this system to 10 percent when they get their next contract. And free agency isn’t the only issue players have been fighting for; it’s unclear what kind of progress has been made to this point on instituting a higher salary cap or increasing the league’s minimum wage (which was $36,500 in 2014).
Depending on how you read the tea leaves, you can see good and bad signs coming out of the last 24 hours. The bad: Well, it’s Wednesday morning and there’s still no agreement; that’s too close for comfort. The amount of information leaking would betray the negotiating principle that no news is good news. The leaks themselves suggest there are still some major stumbling blocks.
On the other hand, the leaks to the press are at least leaks of progress. The sides resumed talks on Wednesday morning. There’s been no word of players formally voting to strike yet—something they had done back in 2010 before striking a deal. And there may even be some improvement on Tuesday’s reported free agency offer, ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle reports.
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MLS’s teams are in a bit of a holding pattern. DC United is still scheduled to play a non-MLS game Wednesday night. Other teams, including the Revolution, are still practicing Wednesday. According to a team spokesperson, the Revs are still scheduled to fly Thursday to Seattle for their opening game on Sunday night. And the Fire, set to play in Friday night’s league opener, boarded their scheduled plane and took off for Los Angeles on Wednesday morning (which could be taken as one of the better signs of potential resolution).
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That tweet, from the Fire’s official account, is indicative of the approach MLS has used to this point. There’s been virtually no mention of the labor situation on its website; it’s all season previews and building anticipation for the upcoming season. On Tuesday night, as negotiations dragged on, several teams (including the Revolution) held parties for fans, to show off their new uniforms. Here at crunch time, it seems, everything is awesome. But if best and final offers haven’t already made an appearance, there’s not a lot of time left to bring them out.
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