Current Events > Pro sports players' unions sign letter opposing liability protections

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Antifar
08/03/20 5:42:14 PM
#1:


https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/03/politics/pro-sports-associations-against-gop-stimulus/index.html

The players associations of the major US professional sports leagues are opposed to what Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says is a must-have component of any new stimulus legislation.

The executive directors of the NFL, NBA, NHL Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer players associations all signed onto a letter raising concerns about the liability protections included in the Senate Republican proposal introduced last week.

The Republican proposal, put together by McConnell and GOP Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, is designed to provide a temporary legal safe harbor for businesses, schools, health care providers and nonprofits that make reasonable efforts to comply with public health guidelines and don't demonstrate gross negligence. Defendants would have the right to move suits to a federal court, which would cover the period from December 2019 until 2024.

"We question whether any such type of special immunity is warranted at all, as there has been no showing that state laws are inadequate," the players associations state, according to the letter obtained by CNN, which is addressed to the top four leaders of Congress -- including McConnell.

"There is still much that is unknown about this disease, how it spreads, and the long-term consequences of exposure. It makes little sense during these uncertain times to both ask employees to return to work and, at the same time, accept all the risk for doing so."

The letter comes as negotiations between Democrats and Republicans on the next coronavirus relief legislation remain at a standstill -- and as the sports leagues grapple with the difficulties and realities of attempting to return to the field and court in the middle of a pandemic.
The players associations took issue with the structure of the proposal.

"The introduced language by Senate Republicans, as we understand it, would federalize all COVID-19 work claims and provide employers with an immunity that is so broad that not even egregious behavior would be actionable," the letter states.
McConnell, for months, has been clear that any new emergency relief proposal must include the liability protections, calling it his "red line."

"No bill will pass the Senate without liability protection for everyone related to the coronavirus," the Kentucky Republican said last month. "Nobody should have to face an epidemic of lawsuits on the heels of the pandemic that we already have related to the coronavirus."

Democrats have made clear they have major problems with the proposal, though haven't dismissed the possibility that some version of it could end up in a final deal. For now, however, the players associations have come down firmly against the idea.

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KiwiTerraRizing
08/03/20 5:49:21 PM
#2:


Outside of collective bargaining how does the federal government have the power to regulate state lawsuits?

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s0nicfan
08/03/20 5:51:24 PM
#3:


KiwiTerraRizing posted...
Outside of collective bargaining how does the federal government have the power to regulate state lawsuits?

It can sign indemnification agreements with businesses. It's why weapons manufacturers aren't legally liable for every single murder. Since federal law supersedes state law, any business with such an agreement would not be at risk no matter what the state law is.

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ThePieReborn
08/03/20 6:03:37 PM
#4:


KiwiTerraRizing posted...
Outside of collective bargaining how does the federal government have the power to regulate state lawsuits?
Supremacy Clause and the Commerce Clause.

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KiwiTerraRizing
08/03/20 6:06:14 PM
#5:


ThePieReborn posted...
Supremacy Clause and the Commerce Clause.

Commerce is a huge fucking stretch for every single employee and employer.

Supremacy only applies if you have the power to do it in the first place, which they dont.

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ThePieReborn
08/03/20 6:08:59 PM
#6:


KiwiTerraRizing posted...
Commerce is a huge fucking stretch for every single employee and employer.

Supremacy only applies if you have the power to do it in the first place, which they dont.
I don't think you appreciate how far the Commerce Clause has been stretched. It's basically the default for congressional authority, because the category of things falling under "having a substantial effect on interstate commerce" is gigantic. Especially when it's an intrinsically "economic activity," because then it can be presumptively aggregated on the whole to be treated as having a substantial economic effect, regardless of individual circumstances. And the employment relationship is by its very nature an economic activity that can be aggregated.

Congress has regularly granted large swathes of entities tort liability protections, and you'll be hard-pressed to find a power source other than the Commerce Clause.

https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB10461

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KiwiTerraRizing
08/03/20 6:23:43 PM
#7:


ThePieReborn posted...
I don't think you appreciate how far the Commerce Clause has been stretched. It's basically the default for congressional authority, because the category of things falling under "having a substantial effect on interstate commerce" is gigantic. Especially when it's an intrinsically "economic activity," because then it can be presumptively aggregated on the whole to be treated as having a substantial economic effect, regardless of individual circumstances. And the employment relationship is by its very nature an economic activity that can be aggregated.

Congress has regularly granted large swathes of entities tort liability protections, and you'll be hard-pressed to find a power source other than the Commerce Clause.

https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB10461

Its been snapping back for decades ever since Lopez to the point id argue Filburn isnt even good law anymore.


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whitelytning
08/03/20 6:43:34 PM
#8:


I find that the work being done by unions during this time really shows why they are needed. The power difference between corporations and workers is far too great right now.

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