The approach to a potential strike was a point of contention among WNBA union members at a sometimes “tough” meeting where the state of labor negotiations was discussed, Front Office Sports reported.
At a virtual meeting held Tuesday by the WNBPA, some players reportedly changed their minds from a mid-December meeting when a potential strike was authorized in a near-unanimous vote.
However, more than half of player leadership in Tuesday’s meeting committed to a potential stoppage in play, authorizing the union’s executive committee, made up of seven players, to declare a strike whenever it feels necessary.
A letter sent after the meeting from WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson to union members, per Front Office Sports, said “last night’s conversation was spirited, passionate, and at times tough. Jackson also note that “Honest debate is not division. It is engagement.”
Players were told by the league in a meeting Monday night that a new CBA needs to be reached by March 10 for the season to move forward without interruption in play.
The most recent movement in the negotiations was a counter proposal sent by the league on Feb. 20, roughly six weeks after the union sent a proposal in late December. The only significant change in the league’s latest proposal was to put team housing — which the league has provided to all players since 1999 — back on the table for 2026 only.
The league’s latest counter proposal made no movement on revenue-sharing or the proposed salary cap of $5.65 million per team.
Jackson’s letter reportedly said a survey would be sent to players to gather feedback on the league’s latest proposal and that a CBA would not be final without a majority of players voting in agreement.
“Everyone has different experiences in the league and in their life,” veteran guard Lexie Brown told Front Office Sports. “So I did not expect all of us to come into these meetings, week by week, and just kumbaya and everybody agree on everything. That’s not reality.”
–Field Level Media
