Lawmakers in state of Washington seek to define WHLers as non-employees

In response to a complaint that led to the investigation into the labor practices of the four Western Hockey League teams based in the U.S. state of Washington, lawmakers in the state have proposed legislation that would expressly define WHL players as non-employees who are not subject to minimum wage provisions.

Washington House Bill 1930 and Senate Bill 5893 introduce new language to existing laws that currently address who is defined as an employee for legal purposes in the state. Though the WHL is not referenced by name in the bills (which are identical), passages like this make it clear that major junior players are the target audience:

CHL players receive a weekly stipend from their teams, along with education money that can be used after playing in the league, with some well-publicized restrictions (like an 18-month time limit to activate the package).

The list of sponsors for each bill includes roughly an equal number of Democrats and Republicans, which likely indicates broad bipartisan support. Lead sponsor of the House bill, Republican Rep. Drew MacEwen – whose district does not include a WHL team – said during a public hearing Tuesday that he has been working with the Washington Department of Labor and Industries on the wording of the bill.

That department opened an investigation into the state’s teams – the Everett Silvertips, Seattle Thunderbirds, Spokane Chiefs and Tri-City Americans – after receiving a complaint that players were child laborers who were not being compensated fairly by their for-profit franchises.

Representatives of all four Washington teams testified at a hearing Tuesday in the capital city of Olympia and they indicated that the clarification in the law could be necessary to keep the teams operating in the state, with Seattle president and general manager Russ Farwell insisting that players are "100 per cent amateur."

The labor department has thus far declined to reveal who filed the original complaint, but at a different Tuesday hearing MacEwen said it came from someone who is “not affiliated with a team or players” and characterized the complainant as someone with “a gripe to take forward.” MacEwen said the bill was designed to “ensure that the amateur players can continue to play.”

In December 2014, the labor department issued a statement that it was “expanding” the investigation that initially began three months earlier in response to a complaint that was filed in September 2013. There haven't been any further public updates on the investigation.

If MacEwen’s bill becomes state law, Washington would become the first jurisdiction to explicitly define major junior players as non-employees. This could lead to players within the league being subject to differing legal statuses if CHLers are deemed to be employees elsewhere, as three active lawsuits in Canada aim to achieve.

Scott Sepich is a WHL columnist for Buzzing the Net. Follow him on Twitter @ssepich. Thanks to @tbirdtidbits for bringing the legislation to our attention.