Peace Breaks Out – We Have a Season!

A five year CBA has been signed to end the labour dispute that threatened the MLS season, Commissioner Don Garber has just announced.

Don Garber Announces the Agreement on the Telephone Conference Call (0.33)

100 journalists on a call and twenty players gathered to hear Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber, MLS Players Union Executive Director Bob Foose and Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service George Cohen make the announcement.

Garber praised the professionalism of the player negotiators. Players will get more money, rights and an improved quality of life, he said. They will have more freedom to move if out of contract. Garber then thanked everyone including the fans for standing by both sides during the conflict. He thanked George Cohen of the US Government for his intervention and said there would not have been an agreement without him.

MLS is now to work more closely to address issues in the future. A joint task force will be set up to address player development.

MLSPU Executive Director Bob Foose expressed his delight at the ‘solid’ agreement. He too thanked the fans for their loyalty, and said no-one wanted a stoppage, but the players were unified in their desire. He wants MLS to be as competitive as possible.

Players will now have guaranteed contracts, free movement rights have been improved, compensation will be improved substantially, and there are now increased opportunities for MLS and Union to work together.

George Cohen, the Federal Mediator, said it was the 75th anniversary of the Wagner Act, the bill that fostered the principle of collective bargaining in the USA. Again, he praised all negotiators. He said there were three basic questions he asked before taking on a mediation:

1. Is there a genuine interest in reaching a deal

2. Do the parties respect each others interests

3. Is there a capacity for creative ideas and initiatives to bridge gaps?

The answer was yes on all three. He added that the negotiations were simple. Each issue, he went through it word by word, and the parties talked it through in detail. Informality and respect were the keys.

Garber and Foose, he said, were at every meeting. He said the parties wouldn’t wait until expiration to talk about renewal. He thanked everybody else including the caterers!

The conference will be archived at mlsnet.com.

The first match will be at Red Bull Arena tonight when the New York franchise entertain Brazilian club Santos in the opening game at the brand new, and sold out, Red Bull Arena.

The MLS season kicks off here in Seattle on Thursday when Philadelphia Union play their first ever match.

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