NRL players urged to take strike action after logo cover-up misses the mark
Players are covering the NRL logo with tape on their jerseys during games in round 22.
A former trade union rep who once stared down media heavyweights Kerry Packer and Rupert Murdoch - and won - has challenged the Rugby League Players Union to flex some muscle and call a snap strike to bring their ugly pay dispute with the NRL to a head. Doug Ryan, a former police newspaper reporter and journalists' union rep in Australia and New Zealand, says media bans, Dally M boycotts and the covering up of NRL logo on jerseys will do little to enhance the players' cause in their 20-month fight to sign off on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Now in retirement on the NSW mid-north coast, Ryan was once a respected union rep on a number of Sydney papers and learned from his dealings with the likes of Murdoch and Packer that sometimes only the most drastic of measures work. "I love my rugby league and would hate for the competition to cease, but the current dispute has left everyone in limbo," Ryan told Yahoo Sport Australia.
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"There doesn't appear to be much progress or any give and take from either party, so something will have to give. Striking should always be a last resort but it may be the only way to bring this all to an end.
"We had some lengthy strikes back in the day and it cost us financially, but it was the only way to get the Packers and Murdochs of the world to listen. Once you withdraw your services and it starts costing them money, you quickly find they come to the negotiating table and I'm proud to say we won better conditions and pay for our workers."
Kurt Capewell says further action from players is coming
The RLPA has stopped short of strike action for now, preferring to introduce a number of measures aimed at puncturing the NRL's day-to-day operations. The latest move is for players in both the men's and women's competitions to plaster over the NRL logo on match days.
There has also been talk of players delaying the start to games. Brisbane forward and RLPA delegate Kurt Capewell confirmed further action was likely on the back of the NRL refusing to allow an independent mediator to oversee CBA negotiations.
He told Nine Newspapers: "We see it as a bit disrespectful, a bit of a slap in the face and an abuse of power. We just want someone from outside the game to come in and nut it out. Nothing is off the table (as far as further industrial action)."
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