WNBA, players’ union agree ‘transformative’ labour deal: Reports
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Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever is one of the biggest stars in the WNBA, which reached an agreement with the players' union on March 18 to increase their salaries and wages.
PHOTO: AFP
NEW YORK – The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the league’s players’ union have reached a verbal agreement on a record-breaking labour deal, US media reports said on March 18, heading off the prospect of a strike.
ESPN reported the league and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) had hammered out a new collective bargaining agreement that would see huge increases in the salary cap, average wages and minimum wages.
The deal follows months of wrangling between both parties which prompted the union to vote overwhelmingly in favour of a strike if necessary.
Players had sought a greater share of league revenues and improved benefits, arguing the new deal needed to reflect the dramatic rise in popularity of the WNBA which has followed the emergence of stars such as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.
ESPN reported that under the new deal, the league’s salary cap would skyrocket from US$1.5 million (S$1.9 million) in 2025 to US$7 million.
The supermax limit – the maximum an elite player can be paid under salary rules – will be raised to US$1.4 million, compared to US$249,244 in 2025.
Average salaries under the deal would increase by five times to US$600,000. Minimum salaries will be more than US$300,000, up from US$66,000 in 2025, ESPN reported.
While the deal still needs to be formally ratified by the union and the WNBA’s board of governors, league commissioner Cathy Engelbert hailed the agreement as a “transformative step forward for players and the league”.
“It’s (been) a process, but we’re very proud to be leading in women’s sports, and these players are amazing, and we’re going to have an amazing 30th season tipping off in May,” the 61-year-old was quoted as saying following talks in New York which wrapped up in the early hours of March 18.
WNBPA executive director Terri Jackson said the deal represented a watershed moment, adding that it can be “summed up in two words: player empowerment”.
She said: “Players coming to the table and standing on business and being reminded of the collective voice and of what it means to be in a union and the power of this union. They never forgot it, and they have taken it, like they always do, to the next level.”
The deal means the 30th season of the WNBA will open on schedule on May 8.
It also comes after senior players had criticised Engelbert, with Minnesota Lynx’s Napheesa Collier accusing her of “negligent” governance.
She said Engelbert had been privately dismissive of criticism by Indiana Fever star Clark and other new players in the league, saying they should be “on their knees” in gratitude for the commercial opportunities they had received.
Engelbert denied making those comments, but acknowledged that “if the players don’t feel appreciated and valued... then we have to do better”. AFP
