AMLU rejects proposal

[Thump]

Originally Posted by DIV2ump

Mediation is non-binding. If they didn't like the deal they simply don't have to recommend it for a vote. The idea that they would go for a bad deal just to have a deal to put in front of the membership is silly. The fact that they recommended it and it went down shows the bargaining committee has no control.

How is management/PBUC supposed to make a deal when the bargaining committee has no credibility when it comes to the committee's ability to sell the deal? This is a serious problem for the AMLU.

The bargaining committee isn't supposed to have control of the union. That memebers should. It's the committes job to get a proposal to the union so they can vote on it. That's what the memebers asked them to do, so they did. I don't see this being a problem for the AMLU. Looks like the problem is for MiLB. What are the umpires losing? A 2,000/month job. Big deal. If you think of it like a business man, the umpires are probably saving money too.

[LMan]

If this is such a terrible deal for the AMLU, why did its members 'buy into' the system in the first place? To my simple mind, THAT was the real mistake, a long time ago......

They knew YEARS ago that it was poor pay, lots of travel, no home life, almost no shot at the bigs, etc.

What changed between when they signed up with PBUC outta pro school and now?

[Thump]

Reality probably set in. Plus...they didn't have a chance to change how things were then. Now they do. The contract is up. That argument is flawed, because then why would anybody go on strike?

The salary scale may have been fair when some of these guys got in the game 10 years ago...but now it's not. Times change...inflation changes...Minor League Baseball refuses to change with the times. Eventually you got to step up and say...enough is enough. That's what they are doing.

[mbyron]

Originally Posted by MrB

I agree that they are strong and they did the right thing, but how are they going to get back on the field when baseball just doesn't care about the quailty of umpiring?

I disagree. Baseball does care about the quality of umpiring. Who is "baseball?" The managers and players care a good deal (though they care about many other things more). The owners care quite a bit less, and much less than they care about player development (which they owe to the big league clubs) and their own bottom line (which is not huge in MiLB).

The money in MLB does not trickle down to MiLB as much as it might. Think of it this way: the average MLB umpire makes maybe 10-20% (depending on experience) of the average MLB player salary. If the MiLB umps made a comparable percentage of the average MiLB player salary, how much would they make?

[LMan]

I understand what you are saying, but I think the system is the culprit. Per diem, health coverage, salary, yada yada are just window dressing. Not one MiLB umpire will get a better shot at the bigs because his health coverage payment went down $10.00/month.

For this to be "to help all our brothers in blue who come after us," then the SYSTEM should be changed, nothing less.

Other wise the current AMLU membership will be seen as grubbing a few more bucks for the present, but not altering the current unbalanced relationship between mgt and employee.

But I seriously doubt that AMLU has that kind of leverage.

[LMan]

Originally Posted by mbyron

The money in MLB does not trickle down to MiLB as much as it might. Think of it this way: the average MLB umpire makes maybe 10-20% (depending on experience) of the average MLB player salary. If the MiLB umps made a comparable percentage of the average MiLB player salary, how much would they make?

I don't see how this analogy can have traction in a sport where the Marlin's entire payroll is exceed by 7 Yankees players' annual salaries. There's just too much whacko economics in every aspect of MLB...none of it makes sense, much less umpire pay.

[WhatWuzThatBlue]

Has anyone else noticed that a couple of AMLU regulars are conspicuously missing?

The comment about Minor League Baseball being crazy to think that they would accept the offer is laughable. The mediator presented the offer to the union bargaining committee and they did have a choice. Ask yourself this, who looks selfish now? PBUC and MiLB may be the stingy holders of the purse but the public won't see it that way. A Federal mediator sided with the union on the unfair bargaining practice issue and presented what he thought was an equitable offer. The AMLU membership still wasn't satisfied with what will be perceived to be a fair offer and the other eye will get blackened.

Where are those taunts that MiLB finally wised up to the incompetency of the amateur umpire replacements? Didn't someone supposedly 'in the know' brag "soon. very soon."? Another said that the Delmon Young incident was the last straw and MiLB realized their error. Time and again we've been told that all our conjecture means little when they really know what is going on at the table. Tsk, tsk, tsk...

I reiterate a six month position - disband the union and sign a limited contract (either as a new union or individuals, like the old days). Get back to work at those thankless jobs and prove your worth. Stop grandstanding and talking smack about the replacements. (They ARE taking your money and effetively limiting your ability to have a career.) Recall the fact that you have been blessed with an uncanny ability to judge split second playing action and be fair in your decision making. That gift is being wasted and for what? You knew what you were getting into when you paid for pro school.

[LakeErieUmp]

p.s. SanDiego - and I didn't even have to get to "QUEENS" college!
(a top flight school by the way)

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by Thump

The union board recommended it because they were forced to.

Maybe. But if that's true how does one explain the enthusiasm of the union slimeball, I mean attorney:

"Our committee is pleased that the mediation process we proposed has resulted in a deal that will get our membership back on the field where they belong." ...union attorney Robert Weaver

At least he's getting paid this summer.

[LakeErieUmp]

He also isn't getting crap from players, coaches, managers, fans, and front offices.
p.s. - I can say this. I'm an attorney.

[GarthB]

Originally Posted by LakeErieUmp

He also isn't getting crap from players, coaches, managers, fans, and front offices.
p.s. - I can say this. I'm an attorney.

But now that 2/3rds of the membership voted down the result of his efforts, he may have to start dealing with crap from umpires.

[LakeErieUmp]

But as you observed, he still gets paid.
Perhaps 90 mph fastballs could be propelled into attorneys bodies. They might gain a new perspective.

[WhatWuzThatBlue]

Who is they? I thought you included yourself in that group.

[LakeErieUmp]

Oh heck no Blue - I'm an attorney, but I can't stand the sleezeball faction as much as everyone else!

[WhatWuzThatBlue]

A friend forwarded this to me from the Mercury News (sorry it was a copy so I don't know where they originate).

Originally Posted by MN

It's the strike that few seem to care about. These are, after all, minor league umpires, who are basically invisible unless they make a bad call.

But angry about low compensation while driving to obscure places, eating in diners and pursuing a small-percentage shot at the big leagues, minor league umps are becoming more visible as their protest becomes protracted. Twenty-five striking umpires picketed with the support of a few major league umps before a Class A game in Hagerstown, Md. this week.

Locally based minor league umpires Chris Hubler of Newtown and Alan Porter of Warminster were there.

“One of the things the owners continually fall back on is, "Well, you guys knew what you were getting into,''' said Hubler, 33. “But I didn't realize I would never have a cost-of-living increase.” Why not, the others did? Few people are guaranteed a C.O.L. raise.

“People don't realize how difficult our job really is,” said Porter, 28. “Think about how much some of these minor league franchises are worth. And nothing's coming toward us.” So, when you signed your contract, you assumed that you'd get a slice of the pie too?

Everyone loves to hate umps, but a reasonable person can understand the umps' beef far better than they could tolerate past player strikes. The top salary for a Triple-A ump is $17,000. Per diem at the top level is only $25. 5 month season

Those are the main reasons why members of the Association of Minor League Umpires are on strike against their employer, the Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation, a subsidiary of minor league baseball. None of the 220 members has crossed the picket line. The umpire union is proposing a per diem increase up to the government rate of $44, and for Triple-A umps to get a combined bump of $600 a month in salary and per diem. Their employer has offered a $100-a-month raise at each level and a $1 increase in per diem. The latter would rise to $40 at Triple A in the sixth year of a new labor agreement.

Salaries and per diems have been mostly static since 1998, the year Major League Baseball ended its umpire development program and cut the $5 million budget for it. When the minor leagues took control, salaries were sliced and frozen.

Major League Baseball's reasoning was that, with low turnover among big league umps, it was getting too few umpires from the minors to justify the investment. But Hubler points out that the minors are where everybody starts, and it usually takes seven years for an ump to reach the bigs. Yes, that is why you are referred to as trainees or apprentices.

“The reason [the owners] can get away with this is they dangle the golden carrot of Major League Baseball in front of our noses,” Hubler said. “The reality is less than five percent of us make it.” Again...is this an epiphany? When I was in pro school, the instructors told us that unless someone died in the next year or two, no one was moving up. That golden carrot is why you went to school and accepted the contract, remember? If not, you should have graciously said , "No thanks, I appreciate the knowledge, but I'll just go back to my hometown and be the best umpire there." Good Lord!

Said Double-A Reading Phillies owner Craig Stein: “It's no different from an apprentice in any business ... and the preponderance of minor league teams don't make a lot of money.” Not according to that IL crew chief!

Adds Joe Finley, an Upper Makefield resident who owns the Double-A Trenton Thunder and Class-A Lakewood BlueClaws: “The umpires I've spoken to don't see it as a typical job to feed their families. Just like players, they see it as a stepping stone....” Again...not according to that IL crew chief!

“If it becomes clear there's not going to be a resolution, I think Major League Baseball and the minor leagues would look for a permanent solution.”

Unrest with new umps?

There hasn't been a widespread outcry against the replacements, but patience is wearing thin in some places. Wednesday night Delmon Young of the Triple -A Durham (N.C.) Bulls flipped his bat into the chest of the home plate umpire after being called out on strikes.

A Triple-A manager stresses patience with the replacements but indicates one advantage is some replacements are too intimidated to toss him.

“Every time I go out there, it's like looking at a deer caught in the headlights,” the manager told “Baseball America.”

Minor League Baseball executives claim they're satisfied with the replacements' performance. To the strikers, that's laughable posturing.

“It's a blatant lie,” Hubler said. “I went to a Trenton game. It's a joke. The professionalism isn't there. They're in awe of the players.” So? Are the players supposed to be in awe of your scary talent? C'mon...there is no professional courtesy extended...even to the big boys.

“I think we're doing just fine with the replacement umps,” Finley said. “There have been some complaints, but from a fan's perspective, you can't tell the difference. It's not like these guys are from the local 7-Eleven; a lot of them are college umps.”

Meanwhile, many strikers are continuing their off-season jobs. Porter, who has a wife and 13-month-old son, has gone back to work at Asplundh Tree Co. in Willow Grove. Hubler does contract work for Yellow Book distribution and is owner-operator of a small trucking company.

In his 10th year as a minor league ump, Hubler's window of major league opportunity has passed.

“I want these guys to get what they deserve,” Hubler said. “And I don't want them to be in my situation in 10 years.” Then go to pro school and tell them how you make such a ****ty living. Few of us really believe you are concerned with the future generations.

Dan Iassogna, a major league ump at the Hagerstown rally, can relate to the strikers' dues-paying. Coming up in the minors, he often worked three jobs in the off-season.

“People don't realize what umpires go through and how little they're compensated,” he said. “The price of gas has tripled, and per diem has stayed the same.”

Here comes the big finish...Hubler's hope is that the replacements will be so bad, the people who usually berate the regulars will root for their return.

“At some point,” Hubler said, “our greatest ally is going to be our natural adversaries — players and managers.”

I couldn't have made it up...priceless! Keep up the great public relations and you guys will have us joining those picket lines in no time.