Madison Square Garden owner James Dolan also owns Cablevision-Optimum, a Tri-State area cable company. Dolan has a record to make the most accomplished union-busters blush: refusing to bargain in good faith with Brooklyn technicians; giving everyone else but these techs raises; and illegally firing 22 who tried to talk to their managers about the situation. All the while, Dolan paid himself $11.5 million – nearly as much as all Brooklyn techs combined.
Dolan and Madison Square Garden are in the running to host the 2015 All-Star Game. So is the brand new Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The NBA, with unionized players and referees, understands the value of unions. All workers deserve these protections.
The NBA shouldn't reward a union-buster with the All-Star Game. Sign this petition to urge the NBA to hold the All-Star game in Brooklyn‘s Barclays Center, not Dolan-owned Madison Square Garden.
Dear Commissioner Stern and Mr. Dolan:
The NBA clearly understands the value of respecting and protecting workers. The National Basketball Players' Association has a long history of keeping players safe, and the National Basketball Referees' Association ensures fair compensation for the unsung heroes of the game.
All workers deserve these protections. As Mr. Stern and the NBA consider where to hold the 2015 All-Star Game, we urge them to show that disrespecting workers has no place in the NBA – and decide against awarding the game to Mr. Dolan's Madison Square Garden.
For more than 15 months, Mr. Dolan – at his company Cablevision/Optimum – has been building up a record that would make the most accomplished union-buster blush: refusing to bargain in good faith with a group of Brooklyn-based technicians that voted to join the Communications Workers of America; illegally locking out and firing 22 of these workers when they attempted to have a conversation with a manager about contract negotiations; and illegally giving raises to all workers except the Brooklyn techs. All the while, Mr. Dolan was compensated $11.45 million – nearly as much as the total compensation of all the Brooklyn techs put together.
We urge Mr. Dolan to reconsider his actions and commit to bargaining a fair contract with the Cablevision/Optimum technicians immediately. However, after more than 15 months of aggressive anti-union, anti-worker behavior, it's hard to say when or if that will happen.
Hosting the All-Star Game is an honor. Under the circumstances, it would be highly inappropriate for the NBA to award that honor to Mr. Dolan's organization – and even more so given that the other contending arena is the new, state-of-the-art Barclays Center, just a few miles away in Brooklyn.
[Your comments will be inserted here.]
We call on the NBA to stand with working Americans and against union-busting – and deny the 2015 All-Star Game to James Dolan's Madison Square Garden.
Sincerely,
[Your Signature]
