New Proposals in the WNBA Collective Bargaining Agreement Negotiation
The Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) presented a counterproposal to the WNBA on Tuesday, which includes certain concessions regarding revenue sharing and housing. According to sources close to the negotiation, significant adjustments have been made to the initial demands. The WNBPA is now requesting an average of 27.5% of gross revenue, defined as revenue before deducting expenses, throughout the agreement. This includes 25% in the first year, with a salary cap of less than $9.5 million. In their previous proposal, presented in December, the union requested that the players receive an average of 31% of gross revenue, starting with 28% in the first year and a salary cap of approximately $10.5 million.The Housing Issue
The housing has been a crucial point in the negotiations. The new proposal from the players suggests that the teams continue to provide housing to the players during the first years of the new agreement. However, in later years, the teams would no longer be obligated to provide housing to the players who receive salaries close to the maximum in multi-year agreements and who have full salary protection. Since the first collective bargaining agreement was ratified in 1999, WNBA teams have been required to provide housing for players. In the previous agreement, which expired in January after two extensions, teams could provide housing in the form of a one-bedroom apartment or an allowance. The league had not included housing provisions in its proposals prior to the most recent one. In its proposal of principles this month, the league made its own concessions on housing and facility standards. The league offered that players with an applicable minimum salary and those with zero years of service would receive a one-bedroom apartment for the first three years of the new agreement, and that development players would be provided with studies. Previously, the WNBPA had proposed that the cost of housing come out of the players’ share of the revenue-sharing system and that the housing allowance be eliminated. In a statement provided Tuesday night, a WNBA spokesperson indicated that the union’s new proposal would not be enough to change the course of negotiations.Amid the 16-month negotiation, the league has continuously emphasized the importance of the health and sustainability of the business. A source close to the situation indicated that the league projects that the new WNBPA plan would result in losses of $460 million during the term of the agreement. In December, it was reported that the league projected the union’s previous plan would result in $700 million in losses during the agreement and would jeopardize the league’s financial health. The union believed that its revenue-sharing model would still put the league in a “profitable position,” according to a separate source close to the negotiations, and called the league’s projected loss figure “absolutely false,” citing a difference in whether expansion fees are included in those calculations. The counterproposal on Tuesday comes 11 days after the league presented a response to a WNBPA proposal around Christmas. That six-week gap caused a lot of frustration on the part of the players, but league officials felt that the players’ proposal did not warrant a response, as it was not very different from the previous one. Both sides agree to implement a revenue-sharing system in which player salaries increase as league and team revenues increase. However, they have not agreed on exactly what that revenue-sharing system should look like, with the league continuing to propose one based on net revenue (i.e., revenue after deducting expenses) and the WNBPA continuing to seek one based on gross revenue. The league has proposed that players receive on average more than 70% of net revenue, which would equate to less than 15% of gross revenue. Their latest proposal included a salary cap of $5.65 million in 2026 (up from approximately $1.5 million in 2025) that will grow in subsequent years in line with revenue growth. In the WNBA’s proposal, maximum salaries, including revenue-sharing payments, would amount to nearly $1.3 million in 2026 and were projected to approach $2 million in 2031. The supermax in 2025 was $249,000. The average player salary, including revenue sharing, was projected to reach $540,000 in 2026 and $780,000 by 2031, up from $120,000 in 2025. The league also said it has made concessions in other areas, such as adding two new positions to the development roster, including commercial consent from pregnant players, eliminating marijuana testing, increasing team contributions to players’ 401(k) retirement accounts, adding new team staff and facility requirements, and premiering a recognition payment for current retirees. Travel on charter flights will also be codified in the new agreement.The Players Association’s latest proposal remains unrealistic and would cause hundreds of millions of dollars in losses for our teams. We still need to complete two Drafts [a two-team expansion draft and the college draft] and free agency before the start of training camp and time is running out. We believe the WNBA’s proposal would result in a big win for current players and future generations.
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