Wednesday, August 04, 1999Umpires file unfair labor charge
Lawyers say MLB will win
The Associated PressNEW YORK — With unemployment less than a month away for one-third of its members, the umpires' union filed an unfair labor practice charge Tuesday against the American and National leagues.
Owners in turn filed a grievance against the umpires, saying their mass resignations violated their labor contract.
Many labor lawyers say the Na tional Labor Relations Board is more likely to rule for the owners than the umpires. To the individual umpires about to lose their jobs, the legal maneuvers may be their final hope.
“I'm going to work as hard as I can to save my job,” said a visibly angry Bill Hohn, one of the 22 umpires notified last week that baseball had accepted their resignations, which are effective Sept. 2.
Umpires want the NLRB to issue a complaint against owners that the agency could use to seek an injunction in federal court to prevent baseball from getting rid of the 22. The board is expected to decide on the charge in 4-to-6 weeks.
Lawyers for the umpires contend the July 14 decision to submit their mass resignations was “protected concerted action” under federal labor law and did not violate the provision in their labor contract stating “there shall be no strike nor other concerted work stoppage.'
“I don't see how that could sit in the parameters within the National Labor Relations Act,” said Stanford law professor William Gould, the NLRB's former chairman.
In baseball's first statement since the controversy began, commissioner Bud Selig, AL president Gene Budig and NL president Len Coleman said the charge had no merit. “The leagues will vigorously contest each and every allegation,” they said.
The umpires held their news conference in a room at the Official All-Star Cafe filled with player jerseys. A sign of their plight was the absence of any umpire memorabilia.
“We're not the guys out there charging $6 for a beer, charging $5 for a hot dog,” Ed Montague said. “But we're the ones who get beat on.”
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Umpires file unfair labor charge