New CBA

[gbill2004]

From the Feb 27 Calgary Sun:

It’s been more than three months since the Saskatchewan Roughriders battled the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the 2013 Grey Cup.

The battle that takes place over the next three months, however, will be just as important.

With the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire the day before training camps open in May, the CFLPA and CFL owners are set to begin negotiations in earnest March 6-7 at the Delta Calgary Airport Hotel.

The two sides exchanged initial proposals earlier this month.

“I don’t think it was pleasing to anyone,” said CFL veteran Keon Raymond, who is one of two Calgary Stampeders player reps, along with fullback Rob Cote.

When the two sides meet face to face next week, Raymond is expecting opinions to be aired.

“I think we expect it to be a little rowdy,” Raymond said.

“(The owners) are going to come with a lot of minimal, but it’s the beginning of the negotiations, and when you have a lot of money on the line and guys fighting for something, it’s going to be tough.

“We definitely have to stick together and be unified as one.”

The most contentious issue will be how the monetary pie is divvied up, as it’s expected the CFLPA will want to see the league’s $4.4-million salary cap increase significantly.

A new five-year TV rights deal with TSN and RDS worth a reported $43-million was signed last year, which is worth approximately 21/2 times more than the previous deal and is expected to more than double what CFL franchises pull in on the TV side to $4.3 million.

“It factors in a ton, knowing it’s almost two or three times more than what it was the last time,” Raymond said.

“We feel like the league is doing a great job and, obviously, there’s no league without the players, but the fans are the most important thing, as well. This is entertainment, and I think we’ve given them a great product to put on the field.

“You definitely want to be compensated for the things that you put your body into.

“I don’t know if the owners really understand the type of physical punishment we put our bodies through.”

New stadiums and increasing viewership and interest in the CFL around the country have the players asking, what about us?

“It just kind of seems like everybody is kind of reaping the benefits except for the guys that are putting in the work,” Raymond said.

The last time around, a new CBA was signed on the final day before training camps opened in 2010.

“We have a great amount of respect between our two organizations,” CFL commissioner Mark Cohon said at the annual state of the league address during Grey Cup in Regina back in November.

“We have a good working relationship, we’re very transparent in terms of them understanding our businesses, our challenges, the opportunities ... We must remain prudent and smart about our business.”

[17to85]

Hopefully they can get something hammered out without too much drama. It's in everyone's best interest to do it quickly and painlessly. It's the one sport where I don't mind the players looking for more. They don't get paid millions and they still have to be as dedicated as any other pro athlete. 

[Noeller]

Football, maybe more than any other sport, is one where I don't mind the players asking for big money. The physical punishment and the brevity of careers means they need to get as much as they can while they can. Hopefully this all works out.

[Mr Dee]

After watching many CBAs being worked out between the Union and the League, always, it seemed, the players had to be the ones who 'accepted' the terms as necessitated by league finances.

This time around, it should be the players who benefit.

Let's all hope this can be done with mutual sharing and the game's best interest in mind.

[Guest]

The players deserves a lot more money this time around, personally I'd like to see the Cap increase by at least $1 million over 4-5 years, but that might be wishful thinking. One thing I'm actually hoping the league avoids is tying in league revenues with player compensation, every new CBA it goes down for the players (in other leagues) and there's always a big commotion about it. If the players really want it put in place, go 60-40 for the owners then the next deal 70-30 for the owners (so long as revenues are up).

[GCn20]

Their used to be a revenue sharing before this last CBA that saw the players receive 56% of revenues. In the last CBA, revenue sharing was taken out from the CBA in favor of set salary caps with set increases. The initial SMS for year one was based on 56% of the revenues of the previous year and then the revenue sharing ceased to exist once the basepoint was established. Increases to the SMS were scheduled according to a projected increase in revenues but at no defined %.

I suspect that the SMS will increase somewhere around a million over the course of the next CBA. It's a fair number to all sides I would think.

[blueandgoldguy]

There is absolutely no reason the salary cap shouldn't increase by at least $500,000 this season, followed by increases of $150,000 or so each of the following 4 seasons to coincide with the increase in the tv deal.  The owners would still see a noticeable increase in their annual revenues thanks to the new tv contract, and that's not even factoring in increased revenues from the new stadiums and improved national sponsorships

[SPuDS]

I'm not even going to pretend I have a clue how much players should ask for and how much of an increase is needed... All I want is the players to be compensated fairly as they are the show and the league balance it so it will not have to worry about viability anytime soon and that we can continue to move forward and build the leagues total number of teams..

[Atomic]

There's a million (literally) players that could play in the CFL and we would not notice a difference whatsoever.  The owners need to fight hard to keep costs down.  I'd be willing to lose a season to negotiate a fair (for the owners) CBA.  The players work hard, no question, but we could find plenty more just like them to do the same job.  The health of the league is the number one priority here, and it can't be compromised due to one over-inflated TV contract.

 

I would offer to increase the yearly salary cap increase increment from $50,000 to $100,000, and immediately raise the cap from 4.6 million to 4.8 million.  More than fair.

[iso_55]

We lose a season we lose the CFL. Simple as that. It's finished. What have the players done to get your nuts all tied up into a knot? These guys are grossly underpaid & a lot of them have long term health problems from injuries they suffered as players after they have retired. The MINIMUM salary for a Canadian player is $46,000. At least last time I heard.That's nothing. These guys deserve to get paid. 

[Atomic]

More concerned about the health of the league than about whether Dwight Anderson can buy more diamond jewellry. 46,000 for six months work is plenty. Arena League players would kill for that.

[Rich]

The league is the healthiest it has been in decades.  

 

The players deserve to get paid, say what you want for 6 months work, but these guys put their bodies on the line (with the real threat of long term injuries) and have to leave their families behind.  They deserve to be fairly compensated.

 

I'm not saying to go back to the structure that almost bankrupt the league in the 90s, but a salary cap tied to league revenues only makes sense.  

[Atomic]

Makes sense? No, that doesn't make sense. The players are easily replaceable. We're not talking about the best players in the world here. We're talking about the B-list football players and there are tons of them out there. If they don't like the salary they're getting, too bad, we can find another guy to do your job just as well for whatever pay he can get. The owners have all the leverage and they should use it. Caving to the players' demands would be a huge mistake.

[HardCoreBlue]

Makes sense? No, that doesn't make sense. The players are easily replaceable. We're not talking about the best players in the world here. We're talking about the B-list football players and there are tons of them out there. If they don't like the salary they're getting, too bad, we can find another guy to do your job just as well for whatever pay he can get. The owners have all the leverage and they should use it. Caving to the players' demands would be a huge mistake.

I'm not understanding your argument about players being easily replaced. Are you saying it's a easy process to regularly turnover players who have the talent fitted to play in the cfl? Sure there may be a few positions compared to others e.g kickers versus qb that have less difficulty in achieving that plug in and play option but overall it doesn't seem that easy. My guess is if you asked any former or existing gm about this, they would be in a better position to explain the complexity and challenges of finding and maintaining a roster of talented players who can successfully play in this unique league.

[17to85]

To be quite honest I'd rather see the players getting a bigger share than the owners simply taking a bigger cut. Why do they need to buy more ivory back scratchers while the players kill themselves.

[pigseye]

Private owners have been bleeding money for years just keeping the league afloat, imo it's more important for those owners to recoup some of their losses first and the layers can have what is left. It looks like the league is on the verge of finally standing on a solid ground and with that you will get salaries increasing and ultimately attracting better talent.

[Atomic]

A CFL team is not an attractive commodity. This is why you have one guy owning two teams. Why? Because they barely turn a profit in most markets. Let's get some stability for the owners and maybe turn owning a CFL team into a worthwhile investment. Until then, the players are just going to have to settle for what they're getting.

[GCn20]

Even the owners don't agree with you. At the last CFL BOG meetings in November the owners and league agreed that the players deserved an equitable share of the new TV contract. What that will be? Who knows....but I guarantee you they will not offer them a measly 200k over 4 years. That would be ludicrous....even the owners think so.

The current SMS is based off of roughly 50% of revenues. The owners and players are happy with that. Will the players get 50% of the increased revenue of the TV deal....it's doubtful, but I think 35-40% would be a number both sides would be happy with when all is said and done. That is an increase of 1 - 1.2 million dollars over a 4 year span with the bulk of it coming up front. If you don't think that's a great deal for the owners then you just simply aren't understanding how SMS numbers are arrived at.

[GCn20]

Atomic, the best stability for the owners is having a league able to attract talent and is not known for screwing it's players. I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that one of the keys to business success is to treat your employees equitably and fairly.

[GCn20]

Pigseye, the owners losses have been underwritten for years. They knew what they were buying when they purchased a CFL team and weren't all that worried about it. The CFL has been on solid ground for the better part of a decade. The players deserve their share.

[iso_55]

Makes sense? No, that doesn't make sense. The players are easily replaceable. We're not talking about the best players in the world here. We're talking about the B-list football players and there are tons of them out there. If they don't like the salary they're getting, too bad, we can find another guy to do your job just as well for whatever pay he can get. The owners have all the leverage and they should use it. Caving to the players' demands would be a huge mistake.

The CFL B List? Then why do you watch? No one is forcing you. Find another sport you can grumble about salaries while calling the CFL bush. Who needs you? Hey the National Lacrosse League needs fans & they pay their players peanuts so it's right up your alley. Go follow it. 

[sweep the leg]

 

Makes sense? No, that doesn't make sense. The players are easily replaceable. We're not talking about the best players in the world here. We're talking about the B-list football players and there are tons of them out there. If they don't like the salary they're getting, too bad, we can find another guy to do your job just as well for whatever pay he can get. The owners have all the leverage and they should use it. Caving to the players' demands would be a huge mistake.

The CFL B List? Then why do you watch? No one is forcing you. Find another sport you can grumble about salaries while calling the CFL bush. Who needs you? Hey the North American Lacrosse League needs fans & they pay their players peanuts so it's right up your alley. Go follow it. 

 

Why does acknowledging that the CFL doesn't have the best football players in the world mean he shouldn't watch it?

[gbill2004]

All the "nipple" talk in the other thread has some people overly sensitive

[sweep the leg]

Even the owners don't agree with you. At the last CFL BOG meetings in November the owners and league agreed that the players deserved an equitable share of the new TV contract. What that will be? Who knows....

Exactly. Who knows what they mean by equitable. Until we hear about their first offer I wouldn't just assume that they're more than happy to hand it over to the players.

[iso_55]

 

 

Makes sense? No, that doesn't make sense. The players are easily replaceable. We're not talking about the best players in the world here. We're talking about the B-list football players and there are tons of them out there. If they don't like the salary they're getting, too bad, we can find another guy to do your job just as well for whatever pay he can get. The owners have all the leverage and they should use it. Caving to the players' demands would be a huge mistake.

The CFL B List? Then why do you watch? No one is forcing you. Find another sport you can grumble about salaries while calling the CFL bush. Who needs you? Hey the North American Lacrosse League needs fans & they pay their players peanuts so it's right up your alley. Go follow it. 

 

Why does acknowledging that the CFL doesn't have the best football players in the world mean he shouldn't watch it?

 

It's not what Atomic said it's how he said it. Big difference. The CFL is the one league in the ******* world that the players are in the community interacting with fans in all kinds of different ways. Most basically play for the love of the game & he's bitching about salaries? And advocating that owners should get tough with the players to the lpoint of shutting down the season in 2014?? Hell, 3 teams DON'T EVEN HAVE ANY OWNERS as they're community owned.... Nope, I don't take back what I said. I know the NFL has better players but at the same time if you are a true fan you appreciate what you have which is still pretty damned good.