WIPA replies to Cozier, says WICB 'ill-prepared'

The West Indies Players' Association (WIPA) has issued a statement responding to Tony Cozier's article on the stand-off between WIPA and the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) related to Guyana's participation in the Champions League. WIPA has accused the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and its satellite boards of pressurizing players to sign contracts without involving WIPA in the process.

WIPA has said that Cozier did not seek its version of the events that ultimately led to the Guyanese government having to step in to break the deadlock between the GCB and WIPA, and denied that it had threatened strike action unless its demands were met.

WIPA said issues were only resolved at the 'eleventh hour' due to the ill-preparedness of the WICB and its satellite boards. "The WICB is, on most occasions, guilty of issuing contracts at the eleventh hour (or not at all), dilatory in responding to requests made by WIPA, guilty of failing to honour agreements on a timely basis [and] of making an issue of players' entitlements under the agreements. The WICB instead prefers to expend large sums of money in pursuing arbitration," WIPA said. It also said that contrary to the establishment's claims, international West Indies cricketers "are the second lowest paid in yearly earnings."

It said the WICB was undermining an established procedure by sending contracts directly to players instead of routing them through WIPA, which scrutinizes various components of the contracts, including match fees, injury payments, drug-testing and insurance on behalf of the players.

The players association outlined the chronology of events in its statement. According to WIPA, the Guyanese players were given "5 or 6 pages out of over 100 pages" from their the Champions League contracts on July 28 and were asked to sign them, failing which the Barbados team would be sent for the tournament.

On August 1, the players signed some pages, subject to the terms and conditions being settled between the GCB and WIPA and the necessary authorization from the rights holder being procured for use of the players' image rights. WIPA complained to the GCB and the WICB about its exclusion from the process, and said that any document signed under duress would be void.

On August 2, GCB President Chetram Singh and WIPA President Dinanath Ramnarine agreed that WIPA would draft a proposal for consideration by the GCB. The proposal was sent to Mr. Singh on August 3, keeping in mind the deadline of August 4 set by the Champions League to reach agreement.

WIPA said it got no response from the GCB and ultimately, the acting Minister of Sport in Guyana intervened on August 13 and a Memorandum of Agreement was signed. WIPA claims that on the same day, it came to know from an article in the Starbroek News that the GCB had procured an injunction and had filed a writ against WIPA. WIPA was "stunned" by this revelation as it has still not been served with any legal documents, and to its knowledge, was on the brink of successful negotiations at that time.

Denying Cozier's assertion that it indulged in 'brinkmanship', WIPA said that it has only "justifiably represented its members against those who were trying to get them to sign documents by apparently deliberately failing to accept their representative as the sole bargaining agent."