TORONTO — The CFL reached out directly to its players and fans Wednesday after the latest round of labour talks with the CFL Players’ Association hit a snag.
The league announced it had rejected a proposal from the CFLPA and also made its first public declaration on the negotiations, unveiling details of the offer it made to the Players’ Association on May 15. Commissioner Mark Cohon outlined the specifics by releasing a pair of letters — one to players and a separate one to fans — saying the league offered to boost both the salary cap and minimum salaries over five seasons.
"Unfortunately the union’s bargaining team has rejected this offer and instead put forward an unrealistic proposal which, if adopted, would threaten the very existence of the CFL," Cohon said. "This is why we are now communicating directly to the players."
The CFLPA did not immediately comment on the latest developments but a news conference was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. CFLPA president Scott Flory, second vice-president Marwan Hage and legal counsel Ed Molstad were expected to attend.
The current collective bargaining agreement is scheduled to expire May 30, threatening the start of training camps June 1. Pre-season games are scheduled to begin June 9 and the regular season is set to begin June 26.
The CFLPA has issued strike ballots to its members and there are no plans in place for future talks. Cohon said the league has told the CFLPA it is prepared to "meet in bargaining at any time once they are prepared to discuss a fair and reasonable settlement that makes sense for both the players and the league."
The league said its offer would boost the average player salary by 12 per cent this season to $92,917 with a further increase over the following five years. The salary cap would increase by nine per cent this season from $4.4 million to $4.8 million per team.
The CFLPA had been expected to table an offer requesting the salary cap be increased to $7 million this season. In his letter to players, Cohon outlined details of the proposal the league rejected.
"On May 20, 2014, your executive committee provided us with their financial proposal in response to our offer," Cohon said. "The CFLPA’s financial proposal provides for a salary cap increase to $6.24 million in 2014, as well as approximately $240,000 per team per year in other monetary increases to pre- and post-season compensation and pension plan contributions per year. From 2015 forward, significantly more would be added to (the) salary cap based on a revenue sharing model.
"We advised the CFLPA in no uncertain terms that their proposal was not realistic, and would not form the basis for any financial settlement."
The league’s offer also included a minimum player salary hike of 11 per cent this season from $45,000 to $50,000, with a further increase to $55,000 over the following five years. The cap would also rise by $100,000 per team if the CFL receives more television revenue from TSN under a renegotiated broadcast agreement for each remaining year on the collective bargaining agreement.
Negotiations between the league and its players have traditionally been amicable. However, there’s a persistent belief this time around players will dig in their heels in order to get what they believe is a fair piece of the financial pie.
Attendance continues to rise and corporate sponsorships remain strong. The CFL’s television agreement with TSN is scheduled to kick in this year and it is reportedly worth $43 million annually — over 2 1/2 times the previous agreement.
In his letter to fans, Cohon addressed the issue of revenue sharing.
"Our offer would share increased revenue with our players," he said. "But we cannot agree to an approach that would focus solely on our teams’ revenues while ignoring their costs and the investments we must make to modernize, stabilize and maximize the CFL.
"For example, our teams are directly investing $175 million in new stadiums and stadium improvements. Like your mortgage, these costs have to be financed over several years. We also need to invest in our digital properties, our social media, marketing and ticketing, and the fan experience in our stadiums. We need to serve you better to continue to earn your support and attract new fans."
In its offer, the league also said it would maintain the $450,000 annual payment to the CFLPA for player marketing and other rights. And if the deal is ratified on or before June 2, the CFL has offered to pay a ratification bonus of $3,000 to veteran players and $1,000 to rookie players on a team roster by June 22.
Player safety details were also released by the league. In the CFL offer, two players would be added to each team’s active roster and the number of contact practices during the regular season would immediately be restricted.
The league would maintain its 2013 CFL policy to restrict the number of contact practices during training camp. All current player pension, medical plan and life insurance benefits would be maintained along with all CFL annual payments for player counselling and rehabilitation support under the CFL-CFLPA Drug Policy.
Flory has said that CFL players won’t play under terms of the existing CBA.
The nine-time CFL all-star, who became CFLPA president in late March, announced his retirement from the Montreal Alouettes earlier this month. The 37-year-old Regina native served as a team player rep for eight years and spent the last four seasons on the union’s executive.
There has been one strike since the formation of the CFLPA in 1965. It came in 1974 and lasted three weeks during training camp before a three-year agreement was signed with no regular-season games lost.
Below is Mark Cohon’s letter to CFL fans:
Dear CFL Fans:
Thank you for your patience and understanding during our contract talks with our players.
Out of respect for our players and the negotiation process, we have had little to say in public. But now that the talks have reached a critical juncture, I want to provide you, the most important people in the CFL, with an update.
Today, we have directly communicated to CFL players the full details of our offer to them.
It is fair and reasonable. It would increase the average player salary by 12 per cent this season, to $92,917. It would increase the minimum player’s salary by 11 per cent this season, to $50,000. It would increase the salary cap by nine per cent this season from $4.4 million to $4.8 million per team. More increases would come over the life of an agreement.
Unfortunately, the union’s bargaining team has rejected this offer, and instead put forward an unrealistic proposal which, if adopted, would threaten the very existence of the CFL.
This is why we are now communicating directly to the players. The details of our offer, in a letter from me to the players, are posted on CFL.ca.
You may hear a lot in the media about revenue sharing. Our offer would share increased revenue with our players. But we cannot agree to an approach that would focus solely on our teams’ revenues while ignoring their costs and the investments we must make to modernize, stabilize and maximize the CFL.
For example, our teams are directly investing $175 million in new stadiums and stadium improvements. Like your mortgage, these costs have to be financed over several years. We also need to invest in our digital properties, our social media, marketing and ticketing, and the fan experience in our stadiums. We need to serve you better to continue to earn your support and attract new fans.
Like you, we want football. We want training camp to open and our full pre-season and regular season schedule to be played. We don’t want a work stoppage.
Like you, we admire and appreciate what our players do on the field and in the community. They deserve to be paid fairly.
But also like you, we love this league. And that means we have a responsibility to you, and future generations of fans, to keep it strong.
Thanks to your support, the CFL is in a better place today than it has been in years. And we have made an offer that reflects this growth.
But we still have work to do to ensure all of our teams can make a profit, which is crucial to attracting the next generation of owners, at the same time we attract new fans. We still have a long way to go to realize our vision of a strong, sustainable league that can succeed in today’s rapidly changing business climate, and in every market.
It was a long winter in Canada. And like you, we can’t wait for the season to start. But we owe it to everyone who loves the CFL to seek an agreement that’s fair to our players and right for our league and its future.
Thank you again for your patience and all you’ve done to help us grow.
Mark Cohon
Commissioner, Canadian Football League
