Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark and her WNBA contemporaries just took a step closer to an offseason strike following a weak first collective bargaining agreement proposal from the league.
There have been rumblings for months that the WNBA and its players could be headed to a work stoppage after this season. How much players make has always been a hot-button topic around the league. And throughout its existence, its athletes did not have much leverage in CBA talks with the WNBA often taking losses.
However, Caitlin Clark and the class of 2024 rookies helped expand the league’s popularity. And led it to record revenue and attendance last year. It gave WNBA players what they needed to push for increased wages in the next CBA. The current CBA ends after this season, and the two sides have begun talks on a new one. However, things have quickly gotten off to a bumpy start.
“A source close to the negotiations told Front Office Sports that the WNBA sent the proposal to the union last week and that it’s the first proposal the league has sent,” FOS reported. “The source confirmed that the players felt the initial proposal wasn’t ‘entirely responsive’ to their request.”
The report follows WNBAPA player representative and Phoenix Mercury player Satou Sabally telling media Tuesday that the WNBA’s opening proposal to the union was a “slap in the face.” The average yearly salary for a WNBA player is $147,745. They are looking for a sizable increase in that number and aiming to see top stars make millions per season.
The WNBA recently agreed on a new 11-year, $2.2 billion media rights deal — that players were not involved in — and announced expanding the league by three more teams earlier this week. The league reportedly made $200 million in revenue last year. However, reports have suggested the WNBA has lost around $10 million per season since it was founded in 1996.
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