The Future of the WNBA at Stake: CBA Negotiations on the Brink
As the Thanksgiving season fades and December approaches, the WNBA faces a crucial decision. The current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expires this Sunday, following a 30-day extension agreed upon before Halloween. Signs indicate that a deal will not be finalized by the deadline, raising questions about the future of negotiations between the league and the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA).What Happens After Sunday?
If an agreement is not reached, the parties could opt for another extension, as happened in October, with the aim of continuing negotiations. However, if there is no extension, a “status quo” period would apply, maintaining the working conditions of the current CBA. This would allow the league and the union to continue negotiating, but it would also open the door to a possible labor disruption, either a strike by the players or a lockout by the owners.Is Another Extension Possible?
A new extension would be a logical step for both parties, allowing good faith negotiations and moving closer to a final agreement. This process is not unusual; the current CBA was ratified in January 2020 after months of negotiations in 2019. Prolonged job uncertainty has real business implications, especially this year due to the WNBA’s packed schedule. The league must conduct an expansion draft for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo teams, which is only possible after a new CBA is completed. In addition, the league’s free agency looms as a “Wild West,” with most veterans becoming free agents. The Golden State Valkyries’ expansion draft took place at the beginning of December last year. Free agency usually begins in January, with contracts being signed from February 1st. The longer it takes without an agreement, the more these crucial aspects of the offseason will be delayed, increasing the possibility that everything will have to be done in a very short time frame.The Keys to Disagreement
Last week, a WNBA proposal was leaked that included significant salary increases and a revenue-sharing component, which together would offer players a maximum of over $1.1 million and a minimum of over $220,000. However, the WNBPA does not see this proposal as progress, according to sources.
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The players no longer want a salary cap that, in their opinion, is chosen arbitrarily and grows at a fixed rate. The current agreement also has a separate revenue-sharing provision that grants direct payments to the players if the league reaches certain revenue targets, something that has not yet happened due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. If the parties remain distant, reaching an agreement in the near future could be difficult.The players’ main concern is that the proposal did not include a system in which the salary cap, and therefore the players’ salaries, would grow enough with the business, as in the NBA.
Sources close to the negotiation
Proposals and Reactions
The WNBA proposed an agreement that, combined with a base salary, would allow players to earn a maximum salary of over $1.1 million, with an average of over $460,000 and a minimum of over $220,000. However, the WNBPA does not consider that this proposal has advanced the negotiations. The players, consulted by sources, expressed the need to work on the revenue sharing system they have been advocating for. One player even called the league’s proposal a “slap in the face,” while another described it as “frustrating.”Although the proposal included significant salary increases, the WNBPA believes that it does not guarantee that the salary cap and player salaries will grow enough with the business. In the current CBA, the salary cap increases annually at a fixed rate (3%), reaching $1,507,100 in 2025, and there is a separate revenue sharing provision.
The players are seeking a salary system more directly based on revenue, as in the NBA, where the salary cap is determined by Basketball Related Income (BRI). The league has stated that it has proposed “significant guaranteed increases in the salary cap and a substantial revenue sharing without limits that allows players’ salaries to grow as the league’s business grows.” The WNBPA responded that the proposal “masks a system that is not tied to any part of the business and intentionally undervalues the players.”
