More teams vote to decertify

The Cowboys and Eagles are reported to have joined the Saints in unanimously voting to decertify the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA).

NFL labor issues

The NFLPA is passing out cards to players setting the stage to request a vote on decertifying the union as the collective bargaining representative of the players. Rumor has it the Saints have unanimously voted for decertification. It is most unusual for a labor organization to seek to destroy its right to bargain for a group of employees it represents. But in this case NFLPA seems to think decertification is a defense against a potential lockout by owners when the current collective bargaining agreement expires in March. More after the jump.

Arbitrator or Court

The Supreme Court rendered an interesting decision in a case where an employer sued a local union for alleged violations of the no strike provisions of a collective bargaining agreement and an international union for tortious interference with the CBA. The local union claimed there was no violation of the CBA because it was not ratified as of the time of the alleged violation of the no strike clause. The 7 member majority opinion (Thomas) held the ratification date issue was one for a court to decide, rather than an arbitrator. A unanimous court refused to extend "federal common law" to include tortious interference with a contract  as a claim cognizable under LMRA § 301. But the really interesting part is after the jump.

Williams v. NFL Nos. 09-2247/2462

The Eighth Circuit upheld the arbitration decision which imposed discipline upon 2 Vikings (K. Williams and P. Williams) and three Saints players (McAllister, Grant and Smith), but found that claims the Minnesota players raised under two state laws, Minnesota’s Drug and Alcohol Testing in the Workplace Act (DATWA),  Minn. Stat. §§ 181.950-957, and Minnesota’s Consumable Products Act (CPA), Minn. Stat. § 181.938 were not preempted by federal labor law. The opinion provides an interesting walk through preemption under Section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act. Because the district court had declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state law claims, the Minnesota players are free to challenge their discipline in state court under two employee protective Minnesota laws. The claims under the state laws have not been completely fleshed out other than in the bare pleadings. One of the surest sports bets of the season is that the NFL will petition for cert.