The Edmonton Elks are the only team that has yet to vote on the tentative collective bargaining agreement struck last week by the CFL and the CFL Players’ Association, TSN’s Farhan Lalji reported on Monday.
8 of 9 teams have voted on the tentative CBA thus far. Only the #Elks remain. There is some real concern across all levels of the @CFL right now that the CBA will NOT be ratified by the players. IF the players vote it down, what happens next?…
The CFLPA distributed an internal memo after reaching an agreement with the league on Wednesday indicating that they would conduct meetings with each team to explain the bargaining package and answer questions before a vote was held.
Though the tentative CBA has yet to be posted publicly in its entirety, it reportedly includes a substantial revenue sharing model between the league and the union, a change to the ratio allowing for up to three veteran Americans to rotate with Canadian starters, the reintroduction of padded practices, and the option for veterans to sign partially guaranteed contracts.
A number of players have publicly voiced their concern that the union may vote against accepting the tentative agreement, including Montreal Alouettes’ linebacker Chris Ackie and B.C. Lions’ fullback David Mackie.
According the Lalji, the biggest concerns for the players appear to be changes to the ratio as well as the issue of ratification bonuses.
…Players could immediately go back on strike or threaten a strike at the start of the regular season. The league could chose to lock them out. IF the vote does not pass things could get ugly in a hurry. Ratio & a ratification bonus appear to be the biggest issues right now…
A team spokesperson informed 3DownNation that the Elks will vote on the tentative CBA on Monday evening.