CBA Thread

Day 5 of talks...

Originally posted by PTulini:
Day 5 of talks...

very encouraging.

Fifth day of talks yiels a "big day" for progress - PFT

Quote:
Fifth day of talks is a “big day” for progress
Posted by Mike Florio on February 22, 2011, 6:03 PM EST

In response to multiple reports that the NFLPA has decided to cancel a key meeting with a select group of agents on Thursday in Indianapolis to allow the union to devote Thursday to the ongoing talks, we’re told that the move came because Tuesday, the fifth straight day of negotiations, was a “big day” at the bargaining table.

Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal initially reported that the meeting with a hand-picked collection of agents won’t occur, due to the ongoing negotiations. Mark Maske of the Washington Post has confirmed the news.

We’ve confirmed the confirmation, for what that’s worth. Coupled with the news that some sort of a breakthrough occurred on the fifth day of the talks, there’s reason for optimism as the deadline for getting a deal done approaches the single digits.

The Thursday meeting with a small group of agents would have served as a precursor to Friday’s all-hands meeting with every certified agent, and it would have entailed union leadership reviewing key issues with the agents before sharing information with all of them.

The NFLPA typically conducts an advance meeting with some agents on the Thursday of the Scouting Combine before conducting the larger meeting on Friday. This year, the NFLPA has made the Friday meeting mandatory for all contract agents.

Scant details remain available regarding specific areas of progress and/or the basis for Tuesday’s breakthrough. Our guess is that, after spending the first few days focused primarily on reaching agreement on issues about which there is less controversy, mediator George H. Cohen focused the two sides on one or more of the core issues: (1) carving up the financial pie; (2) length of the regular season; (3) the rookie wage scale; and (4) the ability of U.S. Judge David Doty to resolve future disputes regarding the terms of the contract between the league and the union.

The decision to cancel the Thursday meeting with the agents means that, barring an unexpected turn, the two sides will continue to negotiate through Thursday, fulfilling their agreement to meet for seven straight days, which came out of the blue after more than seven days of no meetings.

It’ll be interesting to see how the union plans to handle Friday’s all-hands meeting with the agents. With the two sides committed to discretion, it will be impossible for the union to provide a meaningful update without risking that someone will blab.

Also, the fact that the parties agreed to meet for seven straight days doesn’t mean that they’ll definitely break after Thursday’s session ends. Cohen surely would prefer to keep the process going, if progress is being made. And if progress is indeed being made, there’s no reason to pull the plug and give the two sides a chance to cool off.

Though it remains too early to expect to see a puff of white smoke emanating from the chimney (if there even is a chimney) at the offices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service in D.C., the best sign of real progress will come if/when the two sides announce that they have agreed to extend the current deal for two or three weeks to permit further talks. If/when that happens, the question of “if” a deal will be done reasonably can be replaced with “when”.

Originally posted by PTulini:
Fifth day of talks yiels a "big day" for progress - PFT

Quote:
Fifth day of talks is a “big day” for progress
Posted by Mike Florio on February 22, 2011, 6:03 PM EST

In response to multiple reports that the NFLPA has decided to cancel a key meeting with a select group of agents on Thursday in Indianapolis to allow the union to devote Thursday to the ongoing talks, we’re told that the move came because Tuesday, the fifth straight day of negotiations, was a “big day” at the bargaining table.

Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal initially reported that the meeting with a hand-picked collection of agents won’t occur, due to the ongoing negotiations. Mark Maske of the Washington Post has confirmed the news.

We’ve confirmed the confirmation, for what that’s worth. Coupled with the news that some sort of a breakthrough occurred on the fifth day of the talks, there’s reason for optimism as the deadline for getting a deal done approaches the single digits.

The Thursday meeting with a small group of agents would have served as a precursor to Friday’s all-hands meeting with every certified agent, and it would have entailed union leadership reviewing key issues with the agents before sharing information with all of them.

The NFLPA typically conducts an advance meeting with some agents on the Thursday of the Scouting Combine before conducting the larger meeting on Friday. This year, the NFLPA has made the Friday meeting mandatory for all contract agents.

Scant details remain available regarding specific areas of progress and/or the basis for Tuesday’s breakthrough. Our guess is that, after spending the first few days focused primarily on reaching agreement on issues about which there is less controversy, mediator George H. Cohen focused the two sides on one or more of the core issues: (1) carving up the financial pie; (2) length of the regular season; (3) the rookie wage scale; and (4) the ability of U.S. Judge David Doty to resolve future disputes regarding the terms of the contract between the league and the union.

The decision to cancel the Thursday meeting with the agents means that, barring an unexpected turn, the two sides will continue to negotiate through Thursday, fulfilling their agreement to meet for seven straight days, which came out of the blue after more than seven days of no meetings.

It’ll be interesting to see how the union plans to handle Friday’s all-hands meeting with the agents. With the two sides committed to discretion, it will be impossible for the union to provide a meaningful update without risking that someone will blab.

Also, the fact that the parties agreed to meet for seven straight days doesn’t mean that they’ll definitely break after Thursday’s session ends. Cohen surely would prefer to keep the process going, if progress is being made. And if progress is indeed being made, there’s no reason to pull the plug and give the two sides a chance to cool off.

Though it remains too early to expect to see a puff of white smoke emanating from the chimney (if there even is a chimney) at the offices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service in D.C., the best sign of real progress will come if/when the two sides announce that they have agreed to extend the current deal for two or three weeks to permit further talks. If/when that happens, the question of “if” a deal will be done reasonably can be replaced with “when”.

that's great. I don't want to get too optimistic, but that sounds like really good news.

Originally posted by HessianDud:

Originally posted by PTulini:
Fifth day of talks yiels a "big day" for progress - PFT

Quote:
Fifth day of talks is a “big day” for progress
Posted by Mike Florio on February 22, 2011, 6:03 PM EST

In response to multiple reports that the NFLPA has decided to cancel a key meeting with a select group of agents on Thursday in Indianapolis to allow the union to devote Thursday to the ongoing talks, we’re told that the move came because Tuesday, the fifth straight day of negotiations, was a “big day” at the bargaining table.

Liz Mullen of SportsBusiness Journal initially reported that the meeting with a hand-picked collection of agents won’t occur, due to the ongoing negotiations. Mark Maske of the Washington Post has confirmed the news.

We’ve confirmed the confirmation, for what that’s worth. Coupled with the news that some sort of a breakthrough occurred on the fifth day of the talks, there’s reason for optimism as the deadline for getting a deal done approaches the single digits.

The Thursday meeting with a small group of agents would have served as a precursor to Friday’s all-hands meeting with every certified agent, and it would have entailed union leadership reviewing key issues with the agents before sharing information with all of them.

The NFLPA typically conducts an advance meeting with some agents on the Thursday of the Scouting Combine before conducting the larger meeting on Friday. This year, the NFLPA has made the Friday meeting mandatory for all contract agents.

Scant details remain available regarding specific areas of progress and/or the basis for Tuesday’s breakthrough. Our guess is that, after spending the first few days focused primarily on reaching agreement on issues about which there is less controversy, mediator George H. Cohen focused the two sides on one or more of the core issues: (1) carving up the financial pie; (2) length of the regular season; (3) the rookie wage scale; and (4) the ability of U.S. Judge David Doty to resolve future disputes regarding the terms of the contract between the league and the union.

The decision to cancel the Thursday meeting with the agents means that, barring an unexpected turn, the two sides will continue to negotiate through Thursday, fulfilling their agreement to meet for seven straight days, which came out of the blue after more than seven days of no meetings.

It’ll be interesting to see how the union plans to handle Friday’s all-hands meeting with the agents. With the two sides committed to discretion, it will be impossible for the union to provide a meaningful update without risking that someone will blab.

Also, the fact that the parties agreed to meet for seven straight days doesn’t mean that they’ll definitely break after Thursday’s session ends. Cohen surely would prefer to keep the process going, if progress is being made. And if progress is indeed being made, there’s no reason to pull the plug and give the two sides a chance to cool off.

Though it remains too early to expect to see a puff of white smoke emanating from the chimney (if there even is a chimney) at the offices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service in D.C., the best sign of real progress will come if/when the two sides announce that they have agreed to extend the current deal for two or three weeks to permit further talks. If/when that happens, the question of “if” a deal will be done reasonably can be replaced with “when”.

that's great. I don't want to get too optimistic, but that sounds like really good news.

may even happen beefore the march 3rd deadline

Quote:
AdamSchefter For first time, NFL has called a special meeting Thursday in Indianapolis for all NFL GMs and HCs.to debrief them on uncertainties ahead.

sometimes it takes 3 to tango. The owners are organized. The players are organized. So what about the consumers?

If we organized and threatened to boycott 1 game per every strike game, the CBA would be signed in 20 mins.

So everyone can complain all they want but this is all our fault.

And neither side is being greedy, because the consumers are not being greedy enough. They set the price and nobody has the balls to say NO THANKS. So how are the owners or the players being greedy??

Originally posted by danimal:
sometimes it takes 3 to tango. The owners are organized. The players are organized. So what about the consumers?

If we organized and threatened to boycott 1 game per every strike game, the CBA would be signed in 20 mins.

So everyone can complain all they want but this is all our fault.

And neither side is being greedy, because the consumers are not being greedy enough. They set the price and nobody has the balls to say NO THANKS. So how are the owners or the players being greedy??

I agree but we all want or need the NFL, so what are we to do????? We need a rep. Who do you nominate??

I think the owners aren't opening up the books because there is nothing to gain by doing so. The net income swings widely from a team like Dallas or Washington to a team like Buffalo. Not every type of revenue is split 32 ways. Things like merchandise, ticket sales, private box sales, etc all factor in.

If you give the players the books, both sides will just pick and choose which franchises should form the basis of the agreement. But, in my view as a fan, the agreement should be structured so that even teams like Buffalo can compete. The last thing I want is an MLB style league with smaller market teams that simply cannot compete.

Do the players actually have a vote or do their leaders decide everything?

Can't believe this is actually a question! The only people that lose in this whole situation is the fans. In the end, we'll wind up paying more whether its from ticket prices,sunday ticket prices, or merchandise prices!

I listened to a couple of different reports this morning and all inferred that events behind the scenes are lining up for a work stoppage. All these mediated meetings appear to have gained little. No owners have attended, and they are the ones who will actually vote.

With a week to go, it does not look good for a new agreement by March 3. If it doesn't happen by then, it will be a long time before it does.

Originally posted by SJniner7:
Do the players actually have a vote or do their leaders decide everything?

I believe it's confined to the representatives.

-9fA

Day 7 of talks

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=6153874


according to the mediator they meet again on Tuesday


This is good news