Recently, the National Hockey League players' union submitted a collective bargaining agreement proposal whereby players would take an across-the-board 24% pay cut. It would limit the value of rookie contracts and those of restricted free agents as well as subjecting high spending teams to a luxury tax.
This is all but certain to be rejected by the NHL, which has locked out its players and is surely close to cancelling the entire season.
"While the immediate 'rollback' of 24 percent offered by the union would materially improve league economics for the 2004-05 season, there is virtually nothing in the union's proposal that would prevent the dollars 'saved' from being redirected right back into the player compensation system, such that the league's overall financial losses would approach current levels in only a matter of a couple of years," said the NHL's vice-president.
The league wants what it calls 'cost certainty.'
No one puts a gun to any owner's head and says, "You must pay $5 million a year to some big lug of a defenseman who can't skate." If one owner starts a spending spree, no one is forced to follow. An owner doesn't need a collective bargaining agreement to act in a responsible manner. I will never side with a group that demands others sacrifice so that it can be saved from itself.
I know this is radical, but here's my concept of 'cost certainty.'
You project that your team will garner a certain amount in revenues this season; for the sake of argument, let's say $30 million. Therefore, you should plan on having no more than $30 million in expenses this year. This number can be slightly adjusted up or down depending on if you have surpluses or debt remaining from previous years.
Spend no more you make. How's that for 'cost certainty'?
Groundbreaking, isn't it.
The NHL is not a private company, as some argue. It's 30 private companies under a single governing body. It's much closer a cartel like OPEC. Its members are competitors but agree to a common set of rules. Yes, the competitors CAN agree to an artificial ceiling on expenses for those who can't control themselves, but you'll get precious little sympathy from me.
Simply put: American sports is probably the only industry where business owners can impose restrictions on competitors simply by a majority vote of their fellow captains of industry.
It just amazes me that the Americans who claim hate socialism insist on socialist policies for sports. While Europeans, who really are more favorable to socialism or at least social democracy, have it so their sports are far closer to a pure free market model than anything here in the US.
1 comment:
I hope the owners and the players are getting the message the wake up call that they are close to canceling the season and nobody really cares! The people getting reamed here are the vendors, pizza shop owners, parking lot guys, etc. that make their livings from the souvenir pucks and tasty Molsons that I buy at the rink. Other than these poor souls that had the bad luck to cast their lot in with a bunch of losers, nobody is paying attention! My loathing for the NHL has hit surreal levels and it has reached the point that I hope they do cancel the season just so that I don’t have to hear about this anymore. ESPN should bury any news about these negotiations way below the level of county cricket and Division III college field hockey scores. The owners want cost certainty? Here it is: You will get a grand total of $0 from me.
Post a Comment