Major League Baseball announced Tuesday that it has launched a $1MM fund to help support Spring Training workers who have been impacted by the cancellation of Grapefruit League and Cactus League games. Funds will be issued by clubs based on individual need, and will be available to part-time and seasonal workers, including concession workers, grounds crew, security, clubhouse operators, general ballpark operators and game operators.
“We know that our sport is facing a challenging time as we work toward a new collective bargaining agreement,” commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement announcing the fund. “Regrettably, the people who make Spring Training a first-class experience for our fans have been affected through no fault of their own. As an institution, Major League Baseball and our Clubs remain committed to supporting our most vulnerable staff. We hope this fund will alleviate some of the financial concerns they have faced due to missed Grapefruit and Cactus League games this spring.”
MLB’s press release indicates that an additional fund will be established for seasonal and part-time employees who will be impacted by the potential loss of regular-season games as well. The MLBPA established a $1MM fund last Friday to support stadium workers who will be impacted by the cancellation of regular-season games.
The league and the union are set to continue negotiations today. Major League Baseball has characterized today as yet another deadline, suggesting that a 162-game season cannot be played if no deal is reached Tuesday.
So this + the Players 1M every employee will net around 50 dollars each. Can the US Gov’t step in to match so everyone can fill up their gas tank and have enough left to buy a sandwich.
What about the local economy around most ballparks? Restaurants, hotels, etc. Who’s looking after them? Certainly not Manfred and Clark
Its not Clark or the MLBPA’s responsibility. MLB owners locked out the players and cancelled the games. Put the blame where blame belongs. On the owners.
Pads Fans
Its not Clark or the MLBPA’s responsibility.
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Of course it is. The players cancelled the WS last time there was an issue. There is no way the owners were going to pay them for the regular season, and then allow them to walk out when the owners make most of their money.
The players fired the first shot, and now have to deal with the repercussions.
Here I thought the owners made the first shot through attempting to collude in the 80s and depress what free agents make by sharing with other teams offered and with an understand not to let free agent offered go unchecked by other owners.
Maybe players were sick of owners not respecting players enough and continue to find ways to extort their good faith in due diligence.
Codeeg
Here I thought the owners made the first shot through attempting to collude in the 80s
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If you want to go back to the ’80s, fine.
But it doesn’t really matter.
All that matters is that the league knows the players will strike in August. Why? Because that is their best leverage. And the owners lock them out in December. Why? Because that is their best leverage.
Let’s not be so disingenuous as to think both sides are virtuous. A strike and a lockout are two faces of the same coin.
Fat America has the restaurants covered every body wants to eat out and not work a job
I’m not sure how much $1 million will help Spring Training employees. I know for a fact that the $1 million from MLBPA for regular season employees is nothing. There are thousands and thousands of them. It’s probably a $100 bill for each person. The Spring Training employees do it as a side job one month out of every year. The regular season employees look at that as their career. I guess it’s too soon to say how much anyone needs. It’s a nice gesture by both sides. I hope both sides are willing to give more if the lockout continues. There are way more stadium employees than there are players or front office people. Everyone talks about how $700k isn’t enough for baseball players. Most stadium employees would cut off their left hand to get that kind of salary. I hope the same people who support the union holding out also support the union giving a lot of money to stadium employees. Well over the average $100 or so they are pledging to give right now. How about $2,000 dollars to every stadium employee every month. If the MLBPA is so concerned about people being “underpaid” they should pay that much to prove it.
A bunch of BS PR moves by both sides. I laughed at the players’ move. I think it came to about $30 a person. So someone has to fill out an application for the $30. Someone at the union presumably reviews it. Cut a check, mail it, etc.
It’s a huge waste of time, and how many people are actually going to submit it?
$30 will be helpful to a lot of people.
Lol… fast food restaurants are starting at $17 per hour and have trouble filling positions.
According to MLB, there are about 4500 seasonal employees of the teams. The rest are year round employees not affected by the lost games.
For the one week of games lost, its around $200 per person. Or about your weekly paycheck.
If more games are cancelled then the money available per person will be less, but that has not happened yet.
Only 4,500? That seems low. Yankee Stadium has 150 beers vendors (j/K).
The closest I can see via Google is an SI article on the Indians laying off 1,146 seasonal employees:
“over 1100 Cleveland Indians seasonal workers learned today they will not have work if a season does come into existence. ”
If the Indians have 1,146 seasonal employees, how can the average team have only 150?
beer vendors are mostly self-employed.
This is for Spring Training workers. Not regular season workers.
The MLBPA and MLB funds for workers in the regular season home stadiums of the teams will give each of the 4500 seasonal employees of the teams about $400 per week. 25- 50% of their lost income on average.
For tipped employees like food and beer vendors its a much smaller percentage of their income. For others its closer to 50% of their income.
Only 1 week of games have been cancelled so far. Hopefully its not more.
4500 * $400 = $1,800,000. They cannot each give the workers that, if they only have $1,000,000 dedicated to the fund.
1 million is laughable- this is more of a PR stunt than actually helping….
Or alternatively, lift your fake lockout and let everyone get back to work as you iron out the last few details of the new CBA. I love how they create a self imposed crisis and then try to spin as though they are concerned about the workers their own policy has affected. Sounds like government.
Yeah, exactly Prov! This is why I’ve gravitated toward this side, the excuse that “we are preempting a future work stoppage by forcing a work stoppage 6 months early” is a terrible business practice. And the premise that it’s the players’ fault for asking for more during a negotiation is laughable, imo.
I do notice a marked trend on this article page as opposed to the players’ article. A….noticeable absence. Yep, all those who were completely bashing the players for setting up the fund as a PR stunt are mysteriously missing from this thread….lol.
A few days late and a few dollars short. This should have been setup before they announced lost games and announced during the press conference when they announced that Spring Training would be delayed or canceled.
someone said there were appx. 150 players per team and 4,500 for 30. that was a little more than $200 each. that is very little but still helps. there should be less number of employees in spring training and the league’s $1 mil certainly helps. however, there will be 4 weeks of spring training that is not very much shorter than regular one but mlb ball park workers are going to miss, at least, 2 weeks and need more help.
I seriously question the number 150. In my previous response, there was an article about the Indians laying off 1,146 seasonal employees in 2020. IRT to my personal experience. I see maybe 15 employees in the beer/food areas near where I had my tickets. Maybe 8 of those areas per level, and three levels. that’s 360 plus the CF bleachers, which is probably 20+. There has to be a good 75 employees roaming the stands. At least 100 security people.
I don’t see any chance of the 150 being accurate.
aren’t beer vendors self-employed?
i just found out that the individual beer vendors are employees of beer resellers. sad but they don’t count.
I’m not that’s much of a distinction. If I sell beer at the stadium, and get laid off, or if I sell popcorn and get laid off, that feels pretty similar to me.
this is not about the feelings hurt. it is all about who is responsible for their missed wages. in 2020, some of their employers received some compensation but not the workers.
Wow a million bucks divided up by thousands of people will sure make ends meet. Pathetic gesture.
feel free to chip in yourself.
How about promising and providing full pay for those workers and all regular season stadium workers since MLB has shut the game down?
billionaire cheapos would not do it.
Seasonal employees are just that…. Seasonal. They probably haven’t even been hired yet for the upcoming season. Maybe they can collect unemployment, who knows? This $50-$100 gesture is beyond stupid and won’t keep someone from finding alternative work if this drags on.
Just amazing
I’m surprised that MLB didnt come out with either 1.5 or 2 million as their number so they could say that they’re doing more than the players union.
lol they’re only do it to not look as bad.
That’s is what the MLB and MLBPA act like though
I wish I had a job where my bosses told me I didn’t have to show up but everyone felt so bad for me I get paid anyway
So, we’ve gone from “THOSE GREEDY PLAYERS WANT MILLIONS TO PLAY A GAME!!!” to “THOSE LAZY GREEDY (UNEMPLOYED THROUGH NO FAULT OF THEIR OWN) STADIUM WORKERS!!!!”?
Nothing is stopping fans from going to a little league game and watching some kids play baseball. If you don’t care about the talent then just watch the game at any level. Otherwise ask yourself if your a fan because they have a Jersey you like or because you like the product on the field.
Probably mostly the jersey. If you had never seen a game before, and they brought up 26 kids, I’m guessing you’d never know the difference. It’s a bit like going to a museum, and staring in awe-struck wonder at a Rembrandt. Very few people would know whether or not it was the real thing. Without team allegiance, there is no baseball.
im a fan because I like seeing the best players in the world compete. if that makes me a “MLB fan” rather than a “baseball fan” than so be it.
Or course, everyone wants to see the best players in the world. But most people go to the park to root for their team. That’s why every football game in Texas is sold out. They’ll sell out games with kids too young to hold a football. Same thing with college, HS, and elementary school games. Same with the Olympics.
In fact, I enjoyed the Olympics better when we had the college kids playing.
It does make me think with the amount of social media we have these days, how interesting it would be to see some current all stars create like a barn Storm team for fans to watch and stream games. Baseball isn’t modern enough for that though
Dr Evil strikes again!
MLB locked them out. MLB should pay them. Stop begging.
Most Cactus League parks are staffed with charity and community group volunteers. The team pays the organizations which then fund lots of local needs.
In a genius move, my good friend was allowed to work Brewers games as part of his community service after a DUI. A local church staffed the games.