The Law of Work
  • Home
  • About
  • Professor David Doorey
  • Osgoode Hall LLM
  • Books
  • Guest Contributors
  • Useful Links
    • Archive
  • Home
  • About
  • Professor David Doorey
  • Osgoode Hall LLM
  • Books
  • Guest Contributors
  • Useful Links
    • Archive
The Law of Work
Law of Work Archive

Time to Order the NBA Back to Work!

by David Doorey October 6, 2011
written by David Doorey October 6, 2011

The National Basketball Association and the NBA Players Union broke off collective bargaining yesterday, again, and now the season is jeopardy. Here is the New York Times story.  The Players have been locked out since the summer, and the exhibition season has already been cancelled.    Enough already.  It’s time to for the American government to pass back-to-work legislation!! Dammit. [I’d add that Ontario should also pass back-to-work legislation ordering an end to the Toronto Raptors lockout of its players, but since the lockout of the Raptors’ players is already unlawful, there is no need].
What, you think back-to-work legislation for basketball teams is a dumb idea?
Well, when is it appropriate to end a labour dispute by legislation? Is there something important that distinguishes basketball from an airline’s desk clerks?

 

It used to be that back-to-work legislation was reserved for situations in which “essential public services” were threatened, such as when human safety was threatened if the work stoppage continued.  But in Canada, our governments have long since moved pass this quant idea.  Canadians LOVE back-to-work legislation.  No other country in the world has been found in violation of the International Labour Organization’s prohibition on back-to-work legislation in non-essential services more than Canada. We order back transit workers, teachers, garbage collectors, teaching assistants, flight attendants, desk clerks, letter carriers. The current Federal government will no doubt order baggage handlers back to work if Air Canada’s strike later this fall. Back to work legislation is apparently now appropriate for large private for-profit-publicly-traded corporations.
Well, if Air Canada desk clerks and baggage collectors are now ‘essential’ workers, then surely basketball players are too.
The explanation the Conservatives gave for the need to order back Air Canada ticket collectors and flight attendants was that a work stoppage would cause economic harm.  Same explanation given for ordering back letter carriers.  Nevermind that there was little if any evidence that either work stoppage was actually harming the Canadian economy.  The fact that people can fly other airlines, and that snail mail is soooo last century doesn’t matter.  The threshold to justify legislating an end to labour stoppages is now so low, there doesn’t even need to be actual harm to the economy or the public.

On the other hand, we can clearly see the economic harm caused by each lost Raptor game, dammit.  In every city where there is a pro basketball team, dozens of workers are out of work:  all the people who work at the basketball games selling beer, hot dogs, and t-shirts, the ticket collectors, the scalpers.  Then there is all the lost revenues associated with each game from transit, restaurants, bars, taxis, hotels, strip joints.  It goes on and on.  And the lost income for all those businesses and workers has multiplier effects across the economy, leading to fewer jobs, lower profits.  Moreover, unlike Air Canada and Canada Post, who have many natural competitors that are more than happy to take over the business during a work stoppage, the NBA has no competitors.  There is no other NBA.  And the children!  Oh, the poor children, whose lives revolve around watching their favourite NBA stars day in and day out.

There can be little doubt.  The NBA lockout is causing way more economic and emotional harm across North America than the silly little work stoppages as Air Canada and Canada Post.  So, what are our governments waiting for!!!
Join the fight.  Back to Work for the NBA…  Back to Work for the NBA… Back to work…

0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmail
David Doorey

Professor Doorey is an Associate Professor of Work Law and Industrial Relations at York University. He is Academic Director of Osgoode Hall Law School’s executive LLM Program in Labour and Employment Law and a Senior Research Associate at Harvard Law School’s Labor and Worklife Program. Professor Doorey is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School (LL.B., Ph.D), London School of Economics (LLM Labour Law), and the University of Toronto (B.A., M.I.R.).

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

previous post
The Tort of Inducing Breach of the Employment Contract
next post
Congrats to the Liberals. Is the Liberal Win "Undemocratic"?

You may also like

This Blog Entry is About the Lunacy of...

July 21, 2019

A Cross Country Update on the Card-Check versus...

October 3, 2018

The Folly of Not Voting to Strike in...

September 16, 2018

Unifor Posts Photos of Replacement Workers as Gander...

September 10, 2018

A Wrongful Dismissal Case and the Absence of...

August 29, 2018

China Said to Quickly Withdraw Approval for New...

August 27, 2018

The Latest Hot E-Commerce Idea in China: The...

August 27, 2018

The Trump Administration Just Did Something Unambiguously Good...

August 27, 2018

Unstable Situations Require Police In Riot Gear Face...

August 27, 2018

Trump’s War on the Justice System Threatens to...

August 27, 2018

Follow Us On Social Media

Twitter

Latest Tweets

David J. Doorey🇨🇦 @TheLawofWork@mas.to Follow

Law Prof. Talking #labor & #employment #law to the masses. @YorkUniversity @OsgoodeNews @LSELaw @CLJEHarvard @Jacobin @OnLaborBlog https://t.co/5V9r8VPHsh

TheLawofWork
Retweet on Twitter David J. Doorey🇨🇦 @TheLawofWork@mas.to Retweeted
josheidelson Josh Eidelson @josheidelson ·
5h

Scoop: Labor Board prosecutors have concluded Starbucks illegally refused to fairly negotiate at dozens of newly-unionized cafes across the country https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-28/starbucks-illegally-refused-to-bargain-on-zoom-nlrb-lawyer-says Starbucks’ refusal to negotiate if some workers participated via Zoom was illegal, NLRB general counsel says

Reply on Twitter 1640509028567506950 Retweet on Twitter 1640509028567506950 140 Like on Twitter 1640509028567506950 412 Twitter 1640509028567506950
Retweet on Twitter David J. Doorey🇨🇦 @TheLawofWork@mas.to Retweeted
alexisshotwell Alexis Shotwell @alexisshotwell ·
10h

This morning the president of @Carleton_U sent out a note underlining his understanding of “how painful labour disruptions can be to communities,” pleading for us to be calm and respectful and to support our students at the end of term. 1/

Reply on Twitter 1640430514627551256 Retweet on Twitter 1640430514627551256 84 Like on Twitter 1640430514627551256 242 Twitter 1640430514627551256
thelawofwork David J. Doorey🇨🇦 @TheLawofWork@mas.to @thelawofwork ·
11h

Oh fun.

‘AI is on the cusp of taking control: This is how it may all go wrong’

https://apple.news/AWvPXyT8WTVOs5byQvVk-3Q

Reply on Twitter 1640408084093779989 Retweet on Twitter 1640408084093779989 1 Like on Twitter 1640408084093779989 3 Twitter 1640408084093779989
Load More

Categories

  • Alberta
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Australia
  • British Columbia
  • Charter of Rights and Freedoms
  • Childcare
  • Class Action
  • Climate and Just Transition
  • Collective Bargaining
  • Common Law of Employment
  • Comparative Work Law
  • competition law
  • construction
  • COVID-19
  • Diversity
  • Employee Classification
  • Employment Insurance
  • Employment Regulation
  • Europe
  • Financial Industry
  • Fissured Work
  • Freedom of Association
  • frustration of contract
  • Gig Work
  • Health and Safety
  • Health Care
  • Human Rights
  • Immigration
  • Interest Arbitration
  • International Law
  • Labour Arbitration
  • Labour Economics
  • Law of Work Archive
  • Legal Profession
  • Manitoba
  • Migrant Workers
  • Minimum Wage
  • Newfoundland
  • Nova Scotia
  • OLRB
  • Ontario
  • Pension Bankruptcy
  • Privacy
  • Public Sector
  • Quebec
  • Real Life Pleadings
  • Saskatchewan
  • Scholarship
  • Sports Labour
  • Strikes and Lockouts
  • Student Post
  • Supreme Court of Canada
  • technology
  • Transnational Law
  • Uncategorized
  • Unions and Collective Bargaining
  • United States
  • Videos
  • Women and Work
  • Wrongful Dismissal
  • Home
  • About
  • Guest Contributors
Menu
  • Home
  • About
  • Guest Contributors
  • Legal Scholarship
  • Useful Links
  • Archive
Menu
  • Legal Scholarship
  • Useful Links
  • Archive

2020. Canadian Law of Work Forum. All Rights Reserved.