ECHL players to go on strike

Big news coming from the world of minor-league hockey.

On Monday night, the Professional Hockey Players’ Association (PHPA) announced that its ECHL membership has issued a strike notice. Following a strike authorization mandate issued on Dec. 18, the notice is set to take effect on Dec. 26.

From the PHPA, the strike is in response to the ECHL’s “unfair labor practices” and is intended to accelerate CBA talks.

PHPA executive director Brian Ramsay issued a statement, citing that the players want to reach an agreement in hopes of avoiding any disruption to the season.

“For several months,” Ramsay wrote. “We have been engaged in bargaining with the league, and their unlawful and coercive conduct throughout this process has been incredibly disappointing. We are asking for basic standards around health, safety and working conditions that allow the players to remain healthy, compete at a high level and build sustainable professional careers. Our members have never been more united and remain ready to return to the bargaining table at any time.”

The PHPA filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board, hoping it would help move the negotiations forward. The ECHL is currently on holiday break, with the league scheduled to return to play on Friday, when the strike would take effect.

Earlier in the day, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the American Hockey League and the PHPA are closing in on a new collective bargaining agreement that would go through the 2029-30 season. Friedman noted that ECHL players were meeting virtually to discuss the strike, as the league and its players have yet to reach a level playing field in their negotiations.

Players from the ECHL also issued an open letter to fans on Monday, claiming the league has been undermining the bargaining process that has been ongoing since January, citing safety concerns that have plagued the league for several years.

“Over the course of negotiations,” the letter stated. “The league has resisted basic player safety and working condition issues. It has taken almost a year to persuade the league that we should be entitled to choose helmets that properly fit us. We still have clubs supplying members with used equipment. The league shows no concern or regard for players’ travel schedule and has said that the nine-hour bus trip home should be considered our day off.

“Until a few days ago, the league was not prepared to give us a day off per week, and they refused to negotiate a meaningful holiday break that allows players to be home with our families, which would be consistent with professional hockey in North America.”

The players noted that they feel “disrespected, undervalued and taken for granted,” and that the ECHL prefers “bullying to bargaining and does not respect the process nor the players’ right to negotiate a fair settlement.”

According to the letter, the ECHL sent two communications to players through their respective clubs, attempting to pressure the athletes into an agreement and “intimidate players with tactics that violate US labor law.”

Both the AHL and ECHL had been playing on extensions of old CBAs that expired after last season. The ECHL players put out a release in November, laying out the details of the old CBA – including low wages, compact schedules – as the members expressed the desire for better accommodations for the athletes who train year-round to put on the best on-ice product.