Latest news with #UFPA
The Citizen
08-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Citizen
Baler machine valued at over a million rand destroyed in fire
Baler machine valued at over a million rand destroyed in fire The Umtshezi Fire Protection Association (UFPA) yesterday (July 7) responded to a call after a baler caught fire due to component failure on the machine. Thanks to the quick thinking of the operator, the baler was unhitched and moved onto a gravel road, preventing the fire from spreading to nearby bale stacks and causing further damage. The UFPA's Warren Blaker explained that although the fire was quickly extinguished, the machine was completely destroyed. The baler is estimated to be worth over a million rand. Also read: Brutal tavern killings shock Emabhalonini community The baler belonged to a local contractor who had been working on the farm, where the recent Mighty Men Estcourt event was held. Click to receive news links via WhatsApp. Or for the latest news, visit our webpage or follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Join us there! At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Reuters
05-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UFL ratifies new CBA through 2026
May 5 - The United Football League will continue on without any more drama surrounding a new collective bargaining agreement, as the league approved a new CBA with the United Football Players Association. The Monday announcement comes nearly a month after the UFPA ratified the deal, which will be retroactive to the start of training camp on March 2 and will extend until the end of the 2026 season. Under terms of the new CBA, minimum salaries increase from $55,000 to $62,005 for players who participate in all 10 regular-season games. They will raise again the following year to $64,000 with part of that reflecting a reallocation of a per-month housing stipend of $400. In addition, all players will be eligible for year-round health care. Other changes include roster expansion and instituting a process to handle player grievances. "We have reached a collective bargaining agreement with the UFPA," UFL president and CEO Russ Brandon said in a statement. "We look forward to continuing to work with our players to grow professional spring football at the UFL." Players began voicing concerns about a new CBA before training camp began, with 24 quarterbacks signing a letter saying they would skip a league-organized QB camp in February. Some players told media outlets that coaches threatened to release them if they boycotted league media days as was previously discussed by players. All the while, hope remained that a new agreement would be agreed upon as the league and players association continued negotiations, which led to salary increases and respectable health care. Under the CBA, players will have seven months of insurance followed by subsidized COBRA for the following five months. Previously, players were only insured during the four-month UFL season. --Field Level Media
NBC Sports
05-05-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
UFL, UFL players sign CBA through 2026
The UFL officially has labor peace. The spring league announced on Monday that a new Collective Bargaining Agreement has been signed with the UFL Players Association. The agreement runs through 2026. Among other things, the new agreement increases salaries and provides full-year health insurance. 'We have reached a Collective Bargaining Agreement with the UFPA,' UFL president and CEO Russ Brandon said. 'We look forward to continuing to work with our players to grow professional spring football at the UFL.' It was critical to avoid a work stoppage or other labor issues. For both sides. The UFL still faces a steep uphill climb to become sustainable over the long haul. If there's no league, it doesn't matter what the players are getting paid. The main measurements are down from last year to this year. This weekend, the St. Louis Battlehawks slipped under 30,000 fans for a home game for the first time since the UFL launched in 2024. The Houston Roughnecks drew a paltry 4,134 for a Week 6 game against the Memphis Showboats. Viewing audiences are down as well. And while it's easy to blame the small numbers on the fact that every weekend of the UFL season has had plenty of other sports on TV, the same alternatives existed in 2024. We hope the UFL finds its footing. We hope it can cultivate some star power. It's not nearly enough to play games that are almost as good as NFL action. To thrive — and before that, survive — the UFL needs to get people to seek out the games. The biggest challenge, for all spring football leagues past, present, and future, is a simple one. It's difficult to get people to care about football when it's not football season.
USA Today
28-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFL players to open season without CBA, appeal to 'The Rock' for help
UFL players to open season without CBA, appeal to 'The Rock' for help Show Caption Hide Caption Miami QB Cam Ward's pro day leaves no doubts about No. 1 NFL draft pick Cam Ward is feeling confident after his pro day performance. He tells the media why he thinks he will be the number one overall draft pick in April. The 2025 UFL season is set to begin Friday amid an ongoing labor dispute between the league and its players. The UFL and the United Football Players Association (UFPA) do not have a CBA in place for the 2025 campaign. As such, the spring league faced questions about a potential player strike as it began its second season following the USFL and XFL merger. Ultimately, UFL players decided to participate in the league's season opener between the Houston Roughnecks and St. Louis Battlehawks, ESPN's Kevin Seifert reports. However, the players are also planning to make a statement as they prepare for the opener. The UFPA wrote a letter that it plans to hand-deliver to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, one of the UFL co-owners who is expected to attend the first UFL game of the season. Here's what to know about the UFL players' letter to Johnson: FOLLOW LIVE: Battlehawks and Roughnecks face off in UFL opener UFL players' letter to The Rock The UFPA's letter to Johnson requested his assistance in helping to settle the organization's "ongoing contract dispute with the UFL." The UFPA noted it has been negotiating with the UFL's lawyers "for months" about a potential new CBA and expressed displeasure with the way league management has handled negotiations. "We know that you – a former player and proud union member – would not be OK with how this has gone down," the UFPA said, addressing Johnson. What have the UFL players been seeking? They mostly want an avenue to year-round health insurance, which isn't currently provided as part of the league's seasonal contract. "The players haven't been asking for the moon and the stars – just year-round healthcare or a salary increase sufficient to ensure that players can afford it on their own," the letter read. "As a former player, you know how rough the sport of football can be and how vital healthcare is." The players also communicated that they "deeply appreciate" what Johnson has done for the league and are hopeful he can help the two parties reach an equitable conclusion to their labor dispute. "Your success is an inspiration for many of the players and we know how passionate you are about doing right by the players," the UFPA wrote. "Please help us resolve this dispute so that the players can shift all of their attention to chasing their dreams and putting on a show for the great fans of the UFL." Johnson announced on social media Monday he would be at the UFL opener. It isn't clear whether his plans have changed, as the UFL has not promoted his appearance since his initial post. The UFPA did not clarify which players would present Johnson with the letter at Friday's game. What is UFL player salary 2025? The exact value of UFL player salary for 2025 isn't known, but it is reportedly a "negligible" increase from the $55,000 base salary players received last season, per Ben Fischer of the Sports Business Journal. Players are looking for a more substantial salary increase and year-round health insurance. They believe such requests are reasonable, especially "considering the UFL's substantial investment this offseason in marketing and sales staff, as well as in the 111,000-square foot lease for its football operations headquarters," Fischer reports. The UFL said in a statement it "continues to negotiate in good faith with the players union to finalize a collective bargaining agreement, which will be beneficial both to the players and the league."
