Leslie Smith launches Project Spearhead, a fighter-driven effort to get UFC athletes unionized

[Buff]

 

[MestizoIV]

 

[CerebralKnievel]

 

[AronaBeatsJones]

Between this, Couture's thing, and the MMAAA, these guys are wearing themselves thin. They've all got pretty much the same goal, but by dividing themselves with individual movements, they're showing that they're incapable of unity (which is the best chance they have at arranging such a union / association).

IMO, the MMAAA was the most promising, and started off strong, but fell totally flat afterward. We literally haven't heard anything from them for over a year (since their launch), and everyone assumes MMAAA to be dead.

Cowboy immediately flipping on them didn't help, neither did St-Pierre going back. Dillashaw got the TUF gig / title shot afterward, soothing him, and Velasquez injured himself a couple of weeks after the announcement and has been out-of-sight / mind ever since. Kennedy, who was the strongest supporter of MMAAA, was released and retired soon thereafter, killing his influence in the industry.

So instead of gaining members, they lost everyone they had, LOL.

 

[Credo]

 

[neil_totally]

Did anyone bother telling her that per federal law IC's cannot have a traditional union backed but federal protections? I mean if you are not even aware that you cannot have a union, maybe its destined to failure? She probably means she wants to set up a association that can collectively bargain. which IS NOT a union.

what I got from it is that this is an effort to either a; give the fighters the freedoms they deserve as "independent contractors", or b; have them be full employees and treat them properly in that regards.

 

[tithas]

what I got from it is that this is an effort to either a; give the fighters the freedoms they deserve as "independent contractors", or b; have them be full employees and treat them properly in that regards.

The fighters do NOT want to be full employees. They are to stupid to realize that. What they want is the employee benefits without any of the negatives. As employees the UFC can dictate the hours of work they have to do every week, dictate the place of employment, dictate the specific use of company approved physicians for any and all company related medical matters, dictate attendance and training attendance whenever they want. etc. etc. Employment brings itself many things that are not inherent to a fighters lifestyle. If they want to be reclassified they are more than welcome to take their case to the NLRB anytime they want but history is not on their side.

 

[ThunderL1ps]

Pretty much this...

If these guys didnt makes it, how the fuck am i supposed to expect Leslie Smith to succeed?

These were the wrong guys to get the ball rolling. The moment Bjorn was involved I knew it wasn't toast.

The other group that had been involved with MLBPA did a bad job selling themselves or the fighters are flat out idiots.

 

[neil_totally]

The fighters do NOT want to be full employees. They are to stupid to realize that. What they want is the employee benefits without any of the negatives. As employees the UFC can dictate the hours of work they have to do every week, dictate the place of employment, dictate the specific use of company approved physicians for any and all company related medical matters, dictate attendance and training attendance whenever they want. etc. etc. Employment brings itself many things that are not inherent to a fighters lifestyle. If they want to be reclassified they are more than welcome to take their case to the NLRB anytime they want but history is not on their side.

well that's the thing, the UFC is so close to having all those restrictions in place already, while still only employing them as "independent contractors". As employees they might be under more restrictions, but they can unionize to fight for better agreements... or the UFC can agree that their roster ARE independent contractors, and lift some of the requirements that are restrictive to fighters making a better living.

 

[FrankieNYC]

Pretty much this...

If these guys didnt makes it, how the fuck am i supposed to expect Leslie Smith to succeed?

Because those fighters were names only
Once Bjorn showed his true colors (not pro-fighter, but anti-UFC) the fighters bailed

The Boras led union had the best shot, because as an agent he knows contracts as good as WME does.
But the fighters did not support it
They are their worst enemy in this.

Leslie has been both knowledgeable & in the forefront.
She is also not on a UFC witch-hunt like others seemed to be & still in good graces with Dana.

She is admitting she is getting the ball rolling & then will turn it to a real union leader

Let's see how it plays

 

[FrankieNYC]

well that's the thing, the UFC is so close to having all those restrictions in place already, while still only employing them as "independent contractors". As employees they might be under more restrictions, but they can unionize to fight for better agreements... or the UFC can agree that their roster ARE independent contractors, and lift some of the requirements that are restrictive to fighters making a better living.

Good post ...
Until WWE performers get classified as employees, UFC should be safe
WWE/Vince are far more controlling

 

[tdluxon]

Good try but destined to fail. The only way a union could work would be if numerous top tier fighters were behind it, and even that would be a longshot because people get change their tune pretty quick when the bank account is running low.

She is basically a no name, unless she has a bunch of people signed up, not gonna happen

 

[tithas]

well that's the thing, the UFC is so close to having all those restrictions in place already, while still only employing them as "independent contractors". As employees they might be under more restrictions, but they can unionize to fight for better agreements... or the UFC can agree that their roster ARE independent contractors, and lift some of the requirements that are restrictive to fighters making a better living.

I am not sure what requirements exist that prevent them from making a better living? Are there any specific examples? If it's the Reebok deal that has been debunked to the moon and back by fighters with good managers. Only lazy fighters/managers lost sponsors for Reebok. Fighter are free to have as many jobs as they like, make appearances as they like, own businesses, teach seminars, etc. they may be restricted in certain combat sports events but They basically can make as much money as they see fit to make.

 

[sissypunch]

Project 'not getting my contract renewed' is a go!

 

[Shaddows]

https://www.mmafighting.com/2018/2/...r-driven-effort-to-get-ufc-athletes-unionized

Here is part:
The UFC women’s bantamweight fighter has started Project Spearhead, an effort to get UFC athletes to unionize, she confirmed with MMA Fighting on Monday. Unlike past labor movement failures, Smith vows that this attempt for organization will be driven mainly by fighters. She will start out as the interim president of Project Spearhead and Kajan Johnson, a UFC lightweight, is the interim vice president.


“This is kind of just another in a long string of efforts, but I think a lot of things separate it from the other ones,” Smith told MMA Fighting. “One of them being that this has no outside influences. This is for the fighters, it was come up with by me — a fighter.”


The website for Project Spearhead launched Friday. On it is a step-by-step explanation of the unionization process and a link to download authorization cards, which would ignite said process if signed by enough athletes. The site says that the UFC is “misclassifying” fighters as independent contractors, when they are really treated like employees. As it is now, UFC fighters would not be able to be in a union, because they are independent contractors, per U.S. labor law.


“Project Spearhead is here to force the issue - the UFC can choose to either pay into our needs and respect us as employees with a say in all decisions affecting us or treat us like the independent contractors that we are being called and lighten up with the USADA supervision, uniforms and restrictions,” the site reads.

-

A few years ago, Jeff Boras invited any UFC fighter to a meeting about forming a union & only Leslie showed

I wish fighters would wise the fuck up and unionize!!

 

[PeterGriffin]

I am not sure what requirements exist that prevent them from making a better living? Are there any specific examples? If it's the Reebok deal that has been debunked to the moon and back by fighters with good managers. Only lazy fighters/managers lost sponsors for Reebok. Fighter are free to have as many jobs as they like, make appearances as they like, own businesses, teach seminars, etc. they may be restricted in certain combat sports events but They basically can make as much money as they see fit to make.

Bullshit.

 

[chukutee]

I already called dibs on Project Spearhead for my world domination plan. Pick something else Leslie

 

[juanM3]

Not sure this one does better than the others. Couture, Fitch, Quarry, etc have been at it for years and haven't seem to made any real progress.

Then you had the group with Bjorn which had big names but failed quickly.

 

[FrankieNYC]

 

[fractal]

It will take a panel of high profile fighters to get something like this started. Definitely not a Leslie 'who the fook is that?' Smith.