Why a WNBA work stoppage will not start Friday despite CBA expiration

The WNBA's collective bargaining agreement expires Friday, and momentum toward a new deal has stalled out as the Women's National Basketball Players Association seeks a larger slice of the league's revenue share than the 9.3 percent its players receive currently. 

The WNBA reportedly has offered a 30-day extension of the current CBA to the players' union, so that the two sides can keep negotiating. But the WNBPA has not issued a response yet as it keeps its options open; Erin D. Drake, the union's top legal advisor, said this week that an extension is "always on the table."

Of course, an extension is contingent on the sides being close enough to warrant a continuation of a CBA that the players -- and the league itself -- have acknowledged is outdated. And when the CBA expires Friday, the WNBA's calendar could be thrown into chaos, especially if a work stoppage is declared.

Who can declare a work stoppage in the WNBA?

As the WNBA and the WNBPA continue to trade public barbs -- and as Drake herself has said that a new CBA will not get done by Friday -- the possibility of a work stoppage only continues to grow. This could take two forms: either the players opt to go on strike, or the owners will decide to lock out the players.

A lockout in which players would not be able to work in team facilities or with their teams' medical personnel would greatly affect those who are recovering from injuries -- like Minnesota Lynx guard DiJonai Carrington, who suffered a foot sprain during the playoffs that will render her unable to participate in the Unrivaled league come January.

Will a work stoppage begin immediately upon the CBA's expiration?

When the CBA expires at midnight on Friday, the WNBA and the WNBPA will enter into a sort of "status quo."

In effect, it means that league business and player working conditions will not materially change -- and the two sides would have to agree on any proposed changes to this status quo, while negotiating to resolve their differences over revenue sharing with or without certain financial targets that the league must hit before the players see further financial benefits.

During this period of status quo, it would be possible for the players to declare a strike and cut off relations with team and league executives. On the other side, franchise owners could lock out the players if negotiations go further south, preventing them from having anything to do with their teams.

If a work stoppage begins, the players theoretically could take legal action against the owners, or vice-versa. However, the ongoing shutdown of the federal government means the body that would handle this legal action, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), cannot take on new cases after it furloughed practically all of its employees.

In short, league operations will continue as normal once the CBA expires, in hopes that a successful conclusion to CBA negotiations can be reached before games on the 2026 calendar become imperiled.

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