Jeff Fannell » Labor Issues

May 16

by Jeff Fannell in Baseball, Basketball, Career, Hockey, Labor, Labor Issues, Marketing, Media, MLB, NBA, NCAA, Sports, Sports Issues, Uncategorized 0 comments

LEAGUES LOOKING TO CA$H IN ON NEW GAMBLING LAWS

Now that the United States Supreme Court has struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection ACT (PASPA), a federal law that (with a few exceptions) prohibited state-authorized sports gambling, several states are lining up to enact legislation that allows sports wagering within their borders. And why not? There is huge money in sports betting. Last year, Nevada raked in nearly $5 billion in sports wagering. States like New Jersey, New York and others all want a piece of the action. States are not alone in this regard. Sports leagues, many of which opposed efforts to get rid of PASPA, also have their hands out looking for a quick buck. Having sensed that they were losing the PASPA battle, the NBA, NFL, MLB and others came up with the ingenious idea that if the Court were to strike PASPA leagues could cash in on the new legal landscape by imposing “integrity fees” on those states that enact new gambling laws. What are integrity fees? Some say it’s a nice way of saying “extortion.” The leagues and governing bodies say integrity fees are necessary to maintain the integrity and public confidence in their respective sports. The rationale goes like this: once […]

Oct 17

by Jeff Fannell & Associates in Football, Labor Issues, Media, NFL, Uncategorized 0 comments

JEFF FANNELL DISCUSSES KAEPERNICK GRIEVANCE WITH GLOBAL NEWS CANADA

October 17, 2017 – Jeff Fannell spoke recently with Global News Canada (Hamilton, Oct. 16) about the collusion grievance filed by free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick against the National Football League. Kaepernick has remained unsigned this season after his much-publicized protest to bring awareness to police brutality and social injustice in the United States. Listen HERE for Jeff’s take on the grievance and the current state of athlete activism.

Apr 13

by Jeff Fannell in Events, Labor, Labor Issues 0 comments tags: Conference, Global, Player Development, World Players Association

Recap: WPA Player Development Conference

Over 70 player development professionals and player association executives convened in Paris, France April 3-5 for the World Players Association Player Development Conference. The theme of the conference was #PeopleFirst – an acknowledgement that players are people first, and athletes second. Discussion focused on best practices to develop the full potential of players as professionals, people and citizens. Leaders from over two dozen countries, including the United States, Japan, France, Italy, Spain, Australia, Switzerland, England, Botswana, and Zimbabwe shared ideas and experiences in implementing player development programs. Such programs emphasize areas such as player health and safety, mental health and wellness, training and performance (including the use of wearable technology), career transition programs, personal branding, social awareness and involvement, and leadership development. In short, the conversation among conference participants embodied a holistic approach to developing players as people and athletes. On behalf of the MLBPA, I had the pleasure of taking part in a panel discussion with Don Davis, NFLPA Senior Director of Player Affairs and Development, and Stephen Webb, NHLPA Divisional Player Representative. How player development programs are pursued within the context of a collective bargaining agreement and independent of the league and its clubs was a central part […]

Oct 19

by Lori Lord in Agents, Baseball, Hockey, Labor Issues, Sports Business, Sports Law 0 comments tags: Conference, Salary Arbitration, Salary Arbitration in Sports, SAS

Don’t Miss the Salary Arbitration in Sports Conference November 19th

On Thursday, November 19th a trio of veteran sports agents will host the inaugural Salary Arbitration in Sports conference at St. John’s University School of Law in Queens. The SAS conference will feature representatives from Major League Baseball, MLBPA, certified agents and former players, all with comprehensive experience in salary arbitration. Students, professionals and sports fans alike are invited to come join us for an in-depth look at this one-of-a-kind process. Hear from salary arbitration experts and industry veterans: Jeff, Fannell of Jeff Fannell & Associates; Rex Gary, Turner Gary-Sports; Mike Nicotera, The Sparta Group; Gregg E. Clifton, Jackson Lewis, P.C.; Rick Shapiro, MLBPA; Paul Mifsud, Labor Relations, MLB; John Ricco, NY Mets; Omar Minaya, MLBPA; and CJ Nitkowski, Former MLB Player; Jay Reisinger, Farrell & Reisinger, LLC; Matthew Swartz, MLB TradeRumors; Jason Belzer, GAME, Inc. and Forbes.com, and more. At the SAS Conference, seasoned participants in the art of salary arbitration will share their insights and experiences through a full day of panel discussions and question-and-answer sessions. The conference is the inspiration of experienced certified sports agents Jeff Fannell of, Mike Nicotera and Rex Gary. FrontOfficeSports.org, one of the Nation’s fastest growing sources for #Sportsbiz insight and education will […]

Aug 28

by Jeff Fannell in Amateur Sports, Football, Labor Issues, NCAA, Sports Issues 0 comments tags: College Football, Labor, NCAA, NLRB, Northwestern, Sports Issues, Union

NLRB | Northwestern Players Can’t Unionize.

Real quick, because a brother’s gotta run. I come from a union household. My father was a member of D.C. 37 in New York City for over 30 years. A roof overhead, clothes on the back and food on the table were all courtesy of a union job, paying a decent wage. After law school, I worked three years for the AFL-CIO, the umbrella organization for organized labor in the United States. After that, I spent 10 years as a labor lawyer for the Major League Baseball Players Association, widely considered among the most powerful unions in the country. For the past five years I have continued to work on behalf of labor, assisting labor organizations, athletes and the agents who represent them in various capacities. So no one needs to check my union card. When an NLRB regional director ruled in March 2014 that Northwestern football players were employees within the meaning of the National Labor Relations Act, and therefore could unionize, I (of course) … disagreed with the decision. Union sensibilities aside, I simply could not accept that the athletic scholarships the football players received equated to wages or compensation given in exchange for working for the school. […]

Jul 07

by Jeff Fannell in Hockey, Labor Issues, NHL, Sports Business, Sports Issues 0 comments tags: Cleveland, Jock Tax, NHLPA, Tennessee

Hockey Players Settle Jock Tax Dispute

Ask most any lawyer and they will tell you that the only reason they took a course in tax law during law school was either because it was required or because it was a subject on the bar exam. Other than that, the majority of lawyers want little-to-nothing to do with the tax code – municipal, state or federal. Yet, for lawyers practicing in the sports industry, tax considerations crop up often – in the negotiation of player contracts, in player free agency decisions, in stadium and arena development, player and club tax filings and other areas. One controversial area in sports that raises a host of tax implications is the so-called “jock tax.” The jock tax is the income tax levied against visitors to a city or state who earn income in that jurisdiction. Although many professionals travel to other jurisdictions to conduct business (e.g., salespeople, lawyers, entertainers, etc.), athletes are easy targets because their presence in the jurisdiction is publicly known, as is their salary. Thus assigning “duty days” to these athletes for jock tax purposes, is fairly simple to do. Recently, NHL players reached a settlement with the State of Tennessee over the state’s jock tax. The […]

Jun 05

by Jeff Fannell in Labor Issues, People, Sports, Sports Issues 0 comments tags: Adrian Peterson, Brittany Griner, Child Abuse, Deflategate, Domestic Violence, Hope Solo, Player Discipline, Professional Athletes, Ray McDonald, Tom Brady

Beyond Player Discipline

The issue of player discipline has been one of the hottest topics in professional sports over the past several months. Recent conversations have focused on Ray Rice and the physical assault against his then-fiancée, now-wife in an Atlantic City elevator, Adrian Peterson’s child abuse charges, domestic violence charges (separate incidents involving Greg Hardy, Brittney Griner and Hope Solo, to name a few), Josh Hamilton’s drug relapse and Tom Brady’s deflated footballs. Through it all there has been ample discussion on how the system of disciplining players should operate. Recently, the Sports Business Journal asked four noted sports lawyers to weigh in on a number of issues regarding player discipline. Perhaps the most intelligent comment in an article filled with thoughtful responses, came from David Cornwell, a partner at Barnes & Thornburg. In response to the question, “What does the future hold for player discipline?” Cornwell said: “We are seeing a cultural shift take place before our eyes and we do not know it or we are ignoring it. A dirty little secret is that the growing significance of youth and amateur sports in our culture has reached the point where there is too often an inverse relationship between […]

Mar 08

by Jeff Fannell in Baseball, Labor Issues, MLB, Sports Business 12 comments tags: Baseball, Major League Baseball, Salary Arbitration, Sports business

Salary Arbitration 101: Part Three

It now comes down to this. For the player, it’s been years of competing and succeeding at the highest level and accumulating enough service time to become (or stay) eligible for salary arbitration. For the majority of clubs, it’s been years of developing the player and seeing him grow and contribute to the organization. For the advocates on both sides of the table, it’s been months of research and analysis of statistics and the challenging task of reducing it all to a 100-page presentation. Salary arbitration is a unique process. It is not “arbitration” in the traditional sense of the word. There are no court reporters to take testimony, there is no swearing-in of witnesses, there are no post-hearing briefs or oral arguments and, perhaps most notable of all, there are no written decisions from the arbitrators. Salary arbitration cases are presented before a panel of three arbitrators, all of whom are among the top labor arbitrators in the country. Why labor? Because the relationship between the Players Association and the Clubs is grounded in labor law and governed by a collective bargaining agreement. When not hearing salary arbitration cases over the first three weeks of February, the panel […]

Feb 24

by Jeff Fannell in Baseball, Labor Issues, MLB, Sports, Sports Business 1 comments

Salary Arbitration 101: Part Two

It’s all in the numbers. Preparing a salary arbitration case requires a deep dive into the player’s performance statistics, as well as the performance stats of related players in the current and past salary arbitration markets. Sometimes, when the player has performed at an especially high level, the research will extend to players from past generations. In any case, reams of statistics and other data must be collected, examined and re-examined for the ultimate purpose of determining the player’s value. If the case is headed to hearing, the stats will be used to tell the player’s story to the panel of arbitrators assigned to hear the case. When gathering the data it is important to bear in mind each element of the salary arbitration criteria as set forth in the collective bargaining agreement between the players and clubs. They are, first, the quality of the player’s contribution in the most recent season. Simply put, this is an examination of how well the player performed in the just-completed season. How the player performed in prior seasons has a direct bearing on assessing his most recent performance. For example, if a player hit 28 homeruns his first year, 22 in his second […]

Feb 12

by Jeff Fannell in Baseball, Labor Issues, MLB, Sports Business 9 comments tags: Baseball, MLB, Money, Negotiation, Salary Arbitration

Salary Arbitration 101: Part One

It’s February, so for me and scores of others in the baseball industry, it’s time for the annual ritual known as salary arbitration. A time when players and clubs make their case before a panel of arbitrators to determine the player’s salary for the coming season. I’ve been at this for over 15 years and it still remains among the most difficult and challenging things I take on in my practice. As I sit here now in Tampa between cases, my thoughts turned to the number of people I have met over the years who possessed a deep-seated curiosity about the salary arbitration process and what is it, exactly, what goes on inside the hearing room. While the hearings holds the fascination of many, there are many steps along the way that are important to understanding this unique process. First, only certain players are eligible for salary arbitration. Generally, players with three or more years of service, but less than six, are eligible for arbitration. There is a subset of players between two and three years of service who are also eligible. A player will fall into this second group if he has between two and three years of service, […]