No end to NFL labor dispute even after court ruling
NEW YORK |
(Reuters) - The NFL's players claimed an early points victory in their fight with team owners on Monday, but there was still no immediate end in sight to the long and increasingly bitter row over how to carve up the $9 billion empire.
A federal court judge in Minnesota ordered the NFL to end their six-week lockout of the players, saying that the league's actions were hurting not only the players but fans alike.
"The public interest represented by the fans of professional football, who have a strong investment in the 2011 season, is an intangible interest that weighs against the lockout, Judge Susan Nelson wrote in an 89-page ruling released on Monday.
"In short, this particular employment dispute is far from a purely private argument over compensation."
Judge Nelson dismissed the NFL's argument that the decertification of the players' union was a sham but the league refused to concede defeat.
Just as soon as the ruling was announced, the NFL formally requested a stay and appealed the ruling to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing the federal court could not rule on the union's decertification and that was a matter for the National Labor Relations Board.
"We believe that federal law bars injunctions in labor disputes," the NFL said in a statement. "We are confident that the Eighth Circuit will agree."
If the Eighth Circuit Court agrees to hear the league's appeal and issues a stay on Nelson's ruling, the case would be expected to drag on for months, possibly threatening to disrupt the start of the 2011 season, scheduled for early September.
But if the court rejected the appeal, the NFL would have to immediately recommence business, although exactly how remained uncertain.
DeMaurice Smith, an executive director of the NFL Players Association, welcomed the ruling and said he expected the judge's decision would stand up against an appeal.
"I'm happy for our players and for our fans. Today, those who love football are the winners," he said.
There were celebrations as well from some players. The social networks were lit up by players and fans jubilantly declaring victory but not everyone was popping the champagne corks.
Osi Umenyiora, the New York Giants defensive end who was one of the plaintiffs that had asked the court to grant an injunction against the lockout, said he did not think Monday's decision marked the end of the dispute.
"The lockout is bad for everyone, and players will continue to fight it," Umenyiora said. "We hope that this will bring us one step closer to playing the game we love."
Judge Nelson had previously told the feuding parties to try and resolve their dispute through mediation. They agreed to recommence mediation earlier this week and the NFL said that was still their best chance of reaching a lasting agreement.
"We also believe that this dispute will inevitably end with a collective bargaining agreement, which would be in the best interests of players, clubs and fans," the NFL said in their statement.
"We can reach a fair agreement only if we continue negotiations toward that goal."
TALKS COLLAPSED
All sides in the dispute, dubbed as a row between billionaires and millionaires, have been heavily criticized by American media and even U.S. President Barack Obama for squabbling over a fortune at a time when thousands of families were struggling to make ends meet.
America's most popular sport was plunged into its first work stoppage in almost a quarter of a century when nearly two years of collective bargaining talks between the players' union and the league collapsed last month.
With both sides unable to reach agreement on a range of issues centered around how they should divide more than $9 billion in annual revenues, the union immediately decertified, allowing the players to take individual action against the NFL.
Nine players, led by high-profile quarterback Tom Brady, filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NFL and its owners, who responded by imposing the lockout.
Under the current agreement, owners received a guaranteed $1 billion while the remaining money was split, with the players getting around 60 percent and the owners 40 percent.
The league and owners want to increase their automatic cut by another $1 billion, arguing that operational costs had risen since the last deal was struck five years ago.
But the players wanted to maintain the status quo, claiming the owners had failed to provide them with enough financial evidence to prove they needed a bigger slice of the profits.
With the 2011 season not due to kick off until September, both sides were holding out hope a solution can be found by then although the bill for the dispute was still likely to be astronomical.
League officials had estimated a lockout would cost the game $1 billion by September.
(Additional reporting by Simon Evans in Miami)
(Editing by Greg Stutchbury)
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