The WNBA and WNBPA will not reach agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) by Friday, January 9, when the extended deadline expires. The league and players’ union are also unlikely to agree on another new extension.
That’s the news WNBPA Vice President Breanna Stewart shared with members of the Unrivaled media.
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According to ESPN’s Kendra Andrews, “Breanna Stewart says she was told a new extension won’t be agreed to by tomorrow’s CBA deadline, but the WNBA and Players Association are expected to continue negotiating in good faith.”
Sports Reception Annie Costabile added that Stewart said: “We can’t come to an agreement, I can tell you that. »
As ESPN’s Alexa Philippou explainsthe absence of another extension means that the current collective agreement would officially expire, but this does not necessarily change the status of negotiations, as “both parties would enter a ‘status quo’ period during which the terms of the current collective agreement would be maintained and the league and union could continue to negotiate.”
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The absence of an agreement would open the possibility of a work stoppage. The league is not currently considering a lockout, according to Philippou. A future player strike is also unlikely, as Stewart suggested that initiating a strike is “not something we’re going to do immediately, but something we have in our back pocket.”
Philippou further reported that, despite the current impasse, sources around the league believe a deal will eventually be reached and there will be a 2026 WNBA season. Summarizing the estimates from sources on social media, Philippou wrote: “There’s too much at stake if games are missed. But we may not see a new CBA for a while longer. The possibility of a super condensed offseason is real.”
For now, however, frustrations remain, particularly among the players. As Costabile reported“The union was still awaiting a response from the league to the proposal it submitted approximately two weeks ago.”
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Napheesa Collier, co-founder of Stewart’s Unrivaled and also vice president of the WNBPA, expressed players’ dissatisfaction with the league’s process on an Unrivaled broadcast, stating:
You’ve heard a lot of talk about how what we’re asking for isn’t sustainable for the business. Being on the Unrivaled side, I know what it takes to run a sustainable business. If they can’t find a model to do this, they need to put people in place who can do it. We have proven that it is possible. There is a way. We thrive in this area.
In anticipation of the expiration of the current CBA, the WNBPA launched Player Hubs, according to Khristina Williams of NBC Sports and In case you missed it with Khristina Williams. This network will help players unauthorized to use WNBA resources gain access to university training sites and other facilities. in the United States and Spainallowing players to use courts, weight rooms and recovery facilities.
