Marvin Miller
Founding Executive Director, 1966-1982
Marvin Miller Career Accomplishments:
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Established the first collective bargaining agreement – Miller led the Players' efforts in agreeing to the first collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in professional sports – reached in 1968 – which established a new minimum salary of $10,000 – a 42 percent increase from the previous minimum – and the first increase in 20 years. The CBA also included new scheduling rules, a formalized grievance hearing structure and a standardized contract form.
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Neutral Arbitration – In 1970, Miller helped players negotiate the right to arbitration to resolve grievances – an achievement Miller considered the most significant of the union's early years. The impartial dispute resolution process paved the way for nearly all of the players' major gains in ensuing years, including free agency.
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Sport's first organized strike – In 1972, Miller led the Players to sport's first organized strike over pension negotiations with ownership. In a landmark move, Miller and the Players set the tone for labor negotiations for the entire sports world. The strike would last 13 days and end in ownership contribution to the Players' pension plan rising to $5.94 million, up from $2.85 million in 1966.
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“A rising tide lifts all boats” – Miller pushed for free agency for Players, which he believed would ultimately raise salaries around the league by first paying the superstar players a higher rate. In 1975, Miller got his wish with the removal of the Reserve Clause by an independent arbitrator and established free agency for the following year. His belief was proven true. Under Miller's direction, average player salaries rose 1,189 percent – from $19,000 in 1966 to $245,000 in 1982.
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The Pension Plan – The bedrock of the modern-era MLBPA, it was the collective desire of the players in the mid-1960's to protect their pension plan that led to Miller's hiring. More than 50 years later, the Players' pension and benefit plan remains one of the Players' most protected and defended subjects of bargaining.
FAST FACTS:
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Led the Players Union as the MLBPA's first executive director from 1966 to 1982
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Ranked the sixth-most important person in baseball history by The Sporting News in Nov. 2016
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Authored “A Whole Different Ball Game: The Inside Story of Baseball's New Deal” in 1991
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Born in the Bronx, N.Y. on April 14, 1917 and grew up in Flatbush section of Brooklyn rooting for the Dodgers
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Died at the age of 95 on Nov. 27, 2012, and is survived by his two children, Peter and Susan