NBA players reject owners’ ultimatum; Players union to disband – NBA Labour Dispute Update
The NBA labour dispute took another ugly turn on Monday, November 14, when the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) rejected an ultimatum by NBA Commissioner David Stern.
Stern had offered the players a take it or leave it deal for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that the players believed was unfair.
David Stern had also made clear that there would be no further negotiations with the union after this point and the owners offer would only get worse from here on in. Therefore, the players have also decided to disband the NBPA
and file anti-trust lawsuits against the NBA.
The move was expected ever since Stern issued his latest ultimatum in the hopes that players would fold and agree to his version of a fair deal. The truth though is that NBA players have made a number of concessions in the negotiations,
especially when compared to what they had in the previous CBA. When the owners were still not satisfied and seemed determined to give anything back to players, the players decided enough is enough.
"We're prepared to file this antitrust action against the NBA," union executive director Billy Hunter said. "That's the best situation where players can get their due process."
Hunter had been a strong advocate against decertification and had taken a stand against player agents pushing for it not long ago. However his patience too ran out on Monday.
According to the latest proposal of the NBA, the players would not be given significant system concessions that they demanded, and their share in the Basketball Related Income would be brought down from 57 to 50 percent.
The union’s decision was met with a non-chivalrous response by Stern. Stern did not agree with the timing of NBPA’s decision and said these tactics will not scare the NBA owners.
"It looks like the 2011-12 season is really in jeopardy," Stern said in an interview aired on ESPN. "It's just a big charade. To do it now, the union is ratcheting up I guess to see if they can scare the NBA owners or something.
That's not happening."
The NBPA decided to take the step in a meeting on Monday. The meeting was attended by 30 team representatives and 20 other players. Everyone present voted in favour of a decertification.
"There's some mixed emotions but this is what's best for the league, it's what's best for our players," All-Star guard Rajon Rondo of the Boston Celtics told ESPN on Monday. "We have to stand together. It's not about the Boston
Celtics selfishly wanting to play this year; it's about what's best for us as a unit."
The NBA now has 45 days to negotiate with the union before decertification is ratified.
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