CFL players make their point with strike vote

The members of the CFL Players’ Association have spoken – and they’ve done so quite loudly.

In a vote taken this week by the CFLPA, 97.3 per cent of the players who responded favoured a strike if one was needed to advance the negotiations with the league.

“That number really reflects a great show of confidence in our leadership and especially our bargaining committee,” former Saskatchewan Roughriders safety Marc-Olivier Brouillette told 980 CJME’s John Gormley on Friday.

“This is a process and it can be difficult for some guys who are at home in different parts of the country to try and contribute on a day-to-day basis to what our players’ association is trying to accomplish. But to see this type of response from our membership and this show of unity really shows that, as a players’ association, we’re in a position where we’re all on the same page and we’re trying to do what’s best for our players.”

Brouillette retired from the Roughriders in February, but he was one of Saskatchewan’s player reps. He’s also a lawyer in the off-season.

The purpose of the vote wasn’t just to gauge the players’ support. As Brouillette noted, the vote was needed to satisfy labour legislation in jurisdictions across Canada.

The collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players expires May 18. If there isn’t any progress at the negotiating table, the union is urging players not to report to training camps when they open May 19.

As Brouillette put it: “That seems to be the direction we’re heading in right now.”

“I think a lot of fans have seen through social media that a lot of the bigger names and the stars in our league have voiced their position that they wouldn’t be reporting to training camp without a deal being in place,” he continued.

“That is the instruction that we have given to our guys and we expect to maintain that position unless something changes between the bargaining session scheduled for next week in Toronto and the beginning of training camp.”

Salaries are typically the main topic of conversation during negotiations, but there are other issues for the CFLPA. For Brouillette, the players’ main focus is to be more of an equal partner with the league.

“We want to grow this game together,” he said. “We’ve seen over the years that the game has been growing and I believe that salaries should be growing accordingly.”

The players also are eager to have more of a say in their health and safety.

Brouillette pointed to the case of Jonathan Hefney, a former CFL defensive back who has had to pay for surgical procedures he needed after an injury ended his career. The notion of long-term disability benefits has been raised by the CFLPA.

“We’re just trying to make sure that, through a good partnership with the CFL, we can ensure the health and safety of the players,” Brouillette said, “because without the players, there is no league. There is no CFL (and) there is no product to put on the field.”

Talks between the league and the players’ union are to resume next week.