The Women’s National Basketball Players Association believes now is the time to get a new collective bargaining agreement done.
The WNBPA opted out of the current CBA last fall, so both sides are on the clock when it comes to a new deal. The agreement expires Oct. 31.
WNBPA executive director Terri Carmichael Jackson said Thursday that the union will take an assertive approach in its bid to get a new deal done.
“We’ve been aggressive in terms of our discussions, our proposals — plural — and our meeting schedule,” Jackson said at the ESPNW Summit in Brooklyn, New York, according to Front Office Sports. “It’s a group project. We’re doing our part of it, and we’re just hopeful that the league sees the opportunity to have those milestones in place, work towards significant progress — it’s not just a catchphrase — by the halfway point and work towards completion by October 31.”
WNBA players would like an increase in salaries — the maximum is currently $249,244 — and improved benefits. The system also limits a team’s possible replacement options when a player goes on maternity leave.
Jackson declined to rule out a possible work stoppage. So has Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier, the vice president of the WNBPA.
“We have the most leverage we’ve ever had as WNBA players and we…
