Two of the WNBA’s biggest stars and members of the players association executive committee reportedly aren’t happy with how the union’s executive director, Terri Jackson, is negotiating with the league over a new collective bargaining agreement.
Breanna Stewart and Kelsey Plum wrote a three-page letter to Jackson on Monday, which was obtained by ESPN, about “serious concerns about how the PA is handling the current negotiations, including the lack of adequate player involvement in the process.”
The league told players last week that March 10 is the target date for an agreement on a new deal — if that doesn’t happen, they risk a lockout and the start of the season being delayed.
The WNBA season is set to start on May 8.
Stewart and Plum felt players “do not feel like we have an adequate seat at the table in these negotiations” and requested “a changed dynamic between our PA administrators and the players,” the outlet reported.
The WNBPA held a call with players on Tuesday to address the issues raised by Stewart and Plum, the report added.
“We are frustrated that we have not made more progress as we near the March 10 deadline,” Stewart and Plum reportedly wrote in the letter, “and we believe this is a result of a breakdown in communication between you and the Executive Committee and players more broadly.”
Stewart and Plum reportedly listed a slew of information about negotiations that they have requested but not yet received.
“As we understand it, the Executive Committee’s role is to help shape the overall goals and priorities of the CBA and to serve as a bridge between your negotiating team and the broader membership — ultimately helping to secure player approval of any deal,” they wrote. “Without access to the information requested above, the Executive Committee cannot fulfill this role, and players cannot be expected to engage meaningfully in a process they have largely been excluded from.
“When we and other players have attempted to express concerns about negotiations, we have been made to feel as though we are acting against the interests of the PA,” the letter read. “Many other players across the league feel these same frustrations and have expressed them to us, but feel afraid or unable to speak out.”