The MLL has found themselves in deep with an unfair labor charge filed by Rich Furlong on the behalf of four current MLL players: Jason and Jeremy Noble, Graeme Hossack, and Dillon Ward. The suit revolves around a clause in the contract that states players cannot discuss elements of their contracts with one another. Furlong has been involved in lacrosse for many years and has negotiated the Canadian Lacrosse Association’s agreement with the National Lacrosse Team Players Association (NLTPA). He claims that the clause in the contract is “… wholly illegal. There’s absolutely no question they’re illegal under the National Labor Relations Act.” However, the MLL Commissioner Sandy Brown does not seem to be worried about this due to his candid language and relaxed demeanor when asked questions about it. He states that “I’m overly concerned about. I believe we have the appropriate counsel handling the matter for us, people who are well-versed in working with the NLRB, so we’ll cooperate with it in whatever shape or form.” My gut is that this is not going to end well for him or the league after this. Perhaps this is just the tip of the ice berg and the introduction of the PLL showed us that this is not a random assertion.
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