Is it Time to ask the 1 Billion Dollar Question?

03 30, 2011 admin Blog,Business advice,Business essentials,Business relationships,Business resources,Workplace experiences 0 Comment

• Once the Union decertified the Owners had no choice but to call for a Lockout

• NFLPA asks for 10 years of audited financials when the IRS only asks for 3 years

• An NFL team’s product today( which owners need to cover) is part of their expenses . Look at a team’s web site and count the number of non-player employees and you will know why team expenses to support the overall product are increasing.

• Do you walk away from the table because you don’t get 10 year financials or is that just an excuse to walk?

• Owners could have prepared a chart of expenses and had an accountant verify them without disclosing full blown audited P&L’s.

• Has anyone seen any of the NFLPA’s audited financials?

• Transparency of information for only one side?

• Who is paying for the players’ health insurance, legal fees and other expenses right now? Isn’t that relevant to the current actions and those of the “decertified” union?

• Whose strategy are the lawyers for the players following? Those of the lawyers or those that address the issues that players care about?

• Will Smith’s ego continue to get in the way of a settlement?

• Does Smith continue to represent the majority of the players and if not what is a player to do?

• If the players want to make a deal and Smith does not…who prevails?

• If the NFLPA stayed at the bargaining table when the last offer was made before Smith broke off the talks would a deal have been made? I think so.

Judge Susan Nelson Drew the Short Straw

• Having a woman judge on the case makes for a level playing field.

• Judge Nelson has the requisite qualifications and reputation to render a decision that will be objective and consistent with prevailing law.

• Judge Nelson opted NOT to hand off the case to another judge.

• The NLF’s arguments in its opposition to the NFLPA’s lawsuit require Judge Nelson to determine if the NLRB needs to get the ball first.

• Women are fact seekers…they do lots of research to determine where the balance lies and follow the strict contours of the law.

• The issues raised by the NFL require fact finding and therefore I do not believe Judge Nelson will move forward until the NLRB considers the validity of the NFLPA’s decertification.

• I hope that just because Judge Nelson is a woman her findings are not discounted as those from just another “Bimbo.”

Susan T Spencer is a lawyer, entrepreneur, award winning author (Briefcase Essentials) and former GM and minority owner of the Philadelphia Eagles. She was the legal representative of the Eagles during the 1982 lockout. The 1982 lockout was settled in time to play a 9 game regular season ending with the Super Bowl.