The momentum that "seemed to have been building" in MLB's
labor negotiations "slowed considerably" yesterday when
management officials privately labeled an informal MLBA proposal
as disappointing, according to the WASHINGTON POST. Union
officials did not deliver a formal proposal during a meeting in
New York, but they did offer an outline of a proposal for a six-
year deal. Sources say it included the following -- Years 1 & 2:
No luxury tax on player payrolls; the owners' interim revenue-
sharing plan would be in effect; and the players would pay a 2.5%
tax on their salaries (to be collected, but not spent). Years 3
& 4: Clubs would pay a 30% tax on player payrolls above a
threshold of $64M; the owners' revenue-sharing plan would be at
80%; large-market teams would contribute only 60% of what the
owners' plan stipulates, with funds from the players' tax making
up the difference. Years 5 & 6: No luxury tax; and the owners'
revenue-sharing plan would be in full effect (Mark Maske,
WASHINGTON POST, 4/30). MLBPA and management officials have
agreed to meet again this week (USA TODAY, 4/30). It is still
not clear when the union will make its next formal proposal. If
the two sides remain apart, some owners are in favor of going
back to federal court and asking for permission to declare an
impasse in bargaining and impose their own labor rules
(AP/HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 4/30).
