Major League Baseball and the players’ association met on Thursday for the first time since owners locked out the players while the sides negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement, sources familiar with the talks told ESPN.
The conversations involved several non-core economic issues like scheduling, grievance procedures, special events and/or the drug and domestic violence policies.
Negotiations regarding the major obstacles to a new agreement won’t take place until after the New Year but there’s a chance to build momentum on some of the smaller issues between now and then.
Revenue sharing between clubs, the arbitration process and years in the league to free agency are several of the key core economic issues which led to the lockout.
The last collective bargaining agreement expired on Dec. 1 with the owners then choosing to lock out the players until a new deal is reached. The move prohibits players on 40-man rosters from communicating with team personnel or using team facilities. At the time, commissioner Rob Manfred indicated the lockout wasn’t punitive but a way to inject urgency in the negotiations which should pick up again in January.
Source : espn
