Podz92 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 A group of former players (including Ryan Walters nephew, Lucas Walter) are suing the Canadian Hockey League. They claim that players in the 3 Canadian major junior leagues are paid less than the minimum wage as required by law and are asking for $180 million dollars in back pay, overtime and vacation pay. Just great 3 greedy guys who never made it to the big leagues are trying to wreck all of junior hockey in Canada? Where do these jerks get off! They were not employees, they were junior hockey players chasing a dream. Just because they didn't make it doesn't give them the right to destroy the future for every other kid who dreams of making it to the bigs...I am disgusted by this and I can only hope that Ryan Walter is as devistated by this crap as I am... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peaches5 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 They should be paid at least minimum wage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Where's Wellwood Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 I wasn't aware they were paid at all. I was under the assumption that junior hockey player was not a profession with any salary but a means to get noticed and get drafted. Like how we don't get paid to go to school, we pay to go to school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancaster Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Minimum wage should be mandatory, but I guess most important is post-hockey for those who weren't able to make it as a pro. It's good that CHL teams usually offer tuition money for those pursuing post-secondary, but I believe there's a catch where if a player doesn't apply for it within 2 years, they lose that benefit. That should be done away with... since ages 21-24 is when a lot of regular students/young adults take time off away from everything and just travel, etc. Also, there should be more programs and stuff to help out those who don't pursue any academic endeavors. Job placements, internships, and other in-house opportunities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanGnome Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Yet the team owners, broadcast companies etc all make MILLIONS off of advertising and endorsements, yet don't have nearly the costs to offset as say an AHL or NHL franchise. With how prolific Junior hockey has become, the profits have only continued to sky rocket. These kids should at minimum be paid minimum wage, more I'd say since they incur the same level of risk as a professional athlete in the AHL or NHL does. In fact, I would go so far as to say that with the way teams are managed now in Junior hockey, these kids are expected to not only behave, and act like professionals but also to perform as such. I would think that 25-30k/year for a Junior player is more than sufficient, given the fact that they shouldn't be expected to work a part time job in addition to school responsibilities, practice and game time, as well as travel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nuxfanabroad Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 They're takin the fun outa' almost everything that USED to be cheap, and/or free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastal.view Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 i think they should be fairly paid but hard to know what fair is . the legal case will clarify that i also think usa ncaa athletes should be paid how can these institutions justify paying millions to 1 coach and earn all that money off so called students and yet only offer scholarships as compensation to these students some who sustain long term chronic injuries simply not a fair arrangement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Stammer- Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 they should be paid more but why are they suing $180 million? That's ridiculous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HerrDrFunk Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 8 minutes ago, -Stammer- said: they should be paid more but why are they suing $180 million? That's ridiculous. Since @JamesBlondage didn't post the actual link to the story, I can't say for certain but I this sounds like a class action lawsuit. I would assume the 180 million would get distributed among former players who qualify, not just those three. I know CHL players do get a stipend but it's well below minimum wage. So I think at the very least, I think CHL players should get that what a kid who half-asses it every shift in Safeway's deli does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stelar Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Shameful as far as I am concerned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Podz92 Posted June 16, 2017 Author Share Posted June 16, 2017 9 minutes ago, HerrDrFunk said: Since @JamesBlondage didn't post the actual link to the story, I can't say for certain but I this sounds like a class action lawsuit. I would assume the 180 million would get distributed among former players who qualify, not just those three. I know CHL players do get a stipend but it's well below minimum wage. So I think at the very least, I think CHL players should get that what a kid who half-asses it every shift in Safeway's deli does. Sorry can't find the original story but this one from sportsnet covers it pretty well...and yes it is a class action suit. http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/juniors/don-cherry-criticizes-class-action-lawsuit-ohl/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gurn Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/premier-assists-whl-clubs-labour-law-goal-ndp-sees-misconduct-minimum-wage-exemption/ " The New Democrat Party fired a slap shot at Christy Clark’s B.C. Liberal Party and WHL owners in B.C. last week, a scathing press release that accuses the two sides of conspiring covertly to bypass labour law. “The government did it, essentially, in secret and they’ve thrown out the Employment Standards Act, the law, in order to satisfy a small group of employers,” Shane Simpson, NDP spokesperson on jobs, labour and skills, told KTW. A pending class-action lawsuit filed in Toronto and Calgary on behalf of current and former Canadian Hockey League players seeks millions of dollars in outstanding wages, holiday pay, vacation pay and overtime pay, arguing players were employees and deserve to be compensated as such." http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/b-c-exempted-whl-teams-from-paying-players-minimum-wage-during-lengthy-lawsuit " VICTORIA — The B.C. government has exempted the province’s six major junior hockey teams from having to pay their players minimum wage, after threats from the Western Hockey League that teams might not survive a class-action lawsuit on the issue unless the government quickly changed the law in their favour. Freedom of Information documents reveal an intense behind-the-scenes lobbying effort from WHL officials on behalf of teams in Kelowna, Kamloops, Cranbrook, Prince George, Vancouver and Victoria. In letters to Premier Christy Clark and cabinet, as well as in emails to top-level bureaucrats, the league claimed the teams might have to close without government help, because of a class-action lawsuit by former players who have been demanding at least minimum wage pay rather than the existing small monthly stipend." I'd like to see the TRUE financial documents for the teams before giving them legal protection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stelar Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Players play in the juniors for a couple of reasons. It's either a ticket to the NHL/Minors for those who are good enough, a chance to get schooling paid for or to keep playing hockey at a competitive level. No one forces them to play in the league. They knew the rules going in. To come back after the fact is shameful. Embarrassing if you ask me. Does anyone one think most of these teams have the money to pay the players? 3/4 of the teams would fold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stelar Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 6 minutes ago, gurn said: http://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/premier-assists-whl-clubs-labour-law-goal-ndp-sees-misconduct-minimum-wage-exemption/ " The New Democrat Party fired a slap shot at Christy Clark’s B.C. Liberal Party and WHL owners in B.C. last week, a scathing press release that accuses the two sides of conspiring covertly to bypass labour law. “The government did it, essentially, in secret and they’ve thrown out the Employment Standards Act, the law, in order to satisfy a small group of employers,” Shane Simpson, NDP spokesperson on jobs, labour and skills, told KTW. A pending class-action lawsuit filed in Toronto and Calgary on behalf of current and former Canadian Hockey League players seeks millions of dollars in outstanding wages, holiday pay, vacation pay and overtime pay, arguing players were employees and deserve to be compensated as such." http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/b-c-exempted-whl-teams-from-paying-players-minimum-wage-during-lengthy-lawsuit " VICTORIA — The B.C. government has exempted the province’s six major junior hockey teams from having to pay their players minimum wage, after threats from the Western Hockey League that teams might not survive a class-action lawsuit on the issue unless the government quickly changed the law in their favour. Freedom of Information documents reveal an intense behind-the-scenes lobbying effort from WHL officials on behalf of teams in Kelowna, Kamloops, Cranbrook, Prince George, Vancouver and Victoria. In letters to Premier Christy Clark and cabinet, as well as in emails to top-level bureaucrats, the league claimed the teams might have to close without government help, because of a class-action lawsuit by former players who have been demanding at least minimum wage pay rather than the existing small monthly stipend." I'd like to see the TRUE financial documents for the teams before giving them legal protection. Not surprised it's the NDP leading this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 These players play for a team, a team is in fact a defacto company. The company then sells their names and their efforts to make money. These kids are therefore employees of said company. As such should in fact be subject to the same wage allowances as any employee in the country. Period Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghostsof1915 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 So when you played high school basketball or football, should you get paid? If you played soccer, or countless amateur sports should you be paid? BCHL you get a springboard to colleges. NCAA sports in the US is huge business, do the players get paid? Nope. Not every junior team makes money. I think the solution is that players get percentage of merchandise. But if you were paid in Junior A would you be ineligible for college as you are now a "professional"? To quote the movie The Commitments: "How can we be professional when we haven't gotten paid?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HerrDrFunk Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 3 minutes ago, Ghostsof1915 said: So when you played high school basketball or football, should you get paid? If you played soccer, or countless amateur sports should you be paid? BCHL you get a springboard to colleges. NCAA sports in the US is huge business, do the players get paid? Nope. Not every junior team makes money. I think the solution is that players get percentage of merchandise. But if you were paid in Junior A would you be ineligible for college as you are now a "professional"? To quote the movie The Commitments: "How can we be professional when we haven't gotten paid?" With the amount of money the NCAA makes, the fact that their players don't get paid is horse****. Do you know who the highest paid public employee in the US is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghostsof1915 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 6 minutes ago, HerrDrFunk said: With the amount of money the NCAA makes, the fact that their players don't get paid is horse****. Do you know who the highest paid public employee in the US is? US Defence Intelligence Analysts make almost $140,000 US per year. Secretary of Defence makes $203,700. Not including bribes. Lockheed Martin, get this made over $46 billion in revenue. But say they lost over $5 billion overall. Sports are chump change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HerrDrFunk Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 6 minutes ago, Ghostsof1915 said: US Defence Intelligence Analysts make almost $140,000 US per year. Secretary of Defence makes $203,700. Not including bribes. Lockheed Martin, get this made over $46 billion in revenue. But say they lost over $5 billion overall. Sports are chump change. It's Nick Saban, head coach at the University of Alabama. He makes 11.5 million a year and he's a state employee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goalie13 Posted June 16, 2017 Share Posted June 16, 2017 Is anything even going on with this suit? I remember there were some proceedings a while back but haven't heard much lately. Anyways... If this lawsuit succeeds, wouldn't it apply to all junior age leagues and not just the CHL? Those kids are the same age, just playing in a different league, at a different level. Imagine if teams like the Saanich Braves, Coquitlam Express or Powell River Kings had to pay the players wages. I bet they would have to fold. Heck, I don't even think the majority of CHL teams could afford it. Sure, a few teams make a boatload, but I bet 2/3 of the league doesn't turn a profit. I wonder if there are there any legit former-CHLers on here that are willing to comment on this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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