By Gregg E. Clifton, of Jackson Lewis
Russell Okung, a current NFL player and member of the National Football League Players Association’s (NFLPA) executive committee, has filed an unfair labor practice (ULP) charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), alleging the union has threatened retaliation against its own members and violated its own constitution by forcing a full-member ratification vote of a new 10-year labor agreement between the league and its players despite the objections and lack of support from the union’s executive committee.
Okung’s three-page filing alleges the union violated Section 8(b)(1)(a) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), which makes it illegal for a union to restrain or coerce union members in the exercise of their federally protected rights. These protected rights include the right of union members to openly discuss and criticize union contract negotiation strategies. Here, Okung alleges the NFLPA illegally threatened him and other union members with retaliation for their failure to join and support the union and had tried to suppress his legal right to speak up.
Okung identifies NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith as making ongoing threats, and the union’s outside counsel, David Greenspan, as having made a threat on October 31, 2019.
Okung also alleges the NFLPA violated the terms of Section 6 its own constitution by failing to follow the direction of the NFLPA’s executive committee. His allegations are supported by the fact that the 11 members of the executive committee voted 6-5 against recommending the current collective bargaining agreement proposal and that Smit ignored the executive committee and proceeded to forward the contract for member ratification.
Okung also alleges a violation of 8(b)(3) of the NLRA, which makes it illegal for a union to refuse to bargain in good faith over wages, hours, and other terms of employment.
Now, Okung’s ULP charge will go through the NLRB process to determine whether the NLRA has been violated.
The Regional Director will assign specific investigators and oversee the investigation of the charge. The investigators will conduct interviews, attempt to secure affidavits from Okung and likely other executive committee members and review any other pertinent records and evidence to determine whether a formal action should be taken against the NFLPA or whether the charge lacks merit and should be dismissed. If the Regional Director concludes that the charge has merit, a complaint will be issued, and a formal hearing will be scheduled before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ).
While it is doubtful the NLRB will stop the completion of the voting process by NFL players (scheduled to conclude on November 14, 2020), Okung’s strong allegations could affect the voting process, even convincing current players to join veteran NFL players who opposed the current, proposed agreement and vote against its ratification.
