Usery

PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Special mediator William J. Usery embarked on a new strategy yesterday in his attempt to bring an end to baseball's marathon labor dispute. He attempted to blast both sides out of their entrenched positions with a stinging assessment of the stalemated negotiations."After 30-something years and dealing with 1,000 or so national labor disputes, this one has gotten embarrassing and ridiculous," Usery told reporters at Major League Baseball's quarterly owners meeting. "People can't understand it and it has to be gotten over with.

PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Special mediator William J. Usery embarked on a new strategy yesterday in his attempt to bring an end to baseball's marathon labor dispute. He attempted to blast both sides out of their entrenched positions with a stinging assessment of the stalemated negotiations."After 30-something years and dealing with 1,000 or so national labor disputes, this one has gotten embarrassing and ridiculous," Usery told reporters at Major League Baseball's quarterly owners meeting. "People can't understand it and it has to be gotten over with.

WASHINGTON -- Baseball's bitter labor dispute soon may be in the hands of the Clinton administration.Negotiations have slowed to a crawl, and special mediator William J. Usery announced yesterday that he will recommend a settlement to President Clinton late today if no last-minute deal can be reached."

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- The euphoria that enveloped the baseball labor negotiations Friday was nowhere in evidence during yesterday's talks, but each side did establish a clear bargaining position -- for better or worse.Union officials cut about $5 million off the luxury tax threshold that they presented to the owners Friday. The owners presented a comprehensive proposal that looked in some ways like the settlement recommended early last month by special mediator William J. Usery, but was not similar enough to keep the union from accusing the owners of backtracking on several key issues.

Philadelphia Phillies star outfielder Len Dykstra broke ranks yesterday and became the first high-profile player to publicly question the stubborn bargaining strategy of the Major League Baseball Players Association.Dykstra, appearing on ESPN's "Up Front," bucked the union position and spoke in positive terms about the settlement recommendation made Tuesday by special mediator William J. Usery."If you ask me, I think that Usery tried to do what's best for both sides; he kind of, it looks like, cut everything in half," Dykstra said.

Special mediator William J. Usery released a statement yesterday that apparently backs up the contention of the Major League Baseball Players Association that no formal proposal was recommended to either side before Tuesday's five-hour negotiating session at the White House.Major-league owners embraced Usery's recommendations and released the terms to the media, no doubt hoping to take full public relations advantage of their willingness to end the dispute. Union director Donald Fehr insisted that no formal proposal had been made, and yesterday asked Usery to clarify the situation.

RYE BROOK, N.Y. -- Negotiating teams in the Major League Baseball strike finally returned to the bargaining table yesterday, and both sides expressed hope that their six-hour discussion will be a prelude to more serious talks.Special mediator William J. Usery brought the bargaining units together at the Doral Arrowwood Conference Center outside New York for a series of meetings that could last through the weekend. No progress was reported but -- unlike previous attempts at negotiation -- both sides appeared eager to meet again today.

ATLANTA -- Special mediator William J. Usery said yesterday that he has urged ownership to back away from the threat to implement a salary cap, but baseball's long-running labor dispute still appears to be moving in that direction.Usery, who addressed a crowd of about 90 players during the second day of a Major League Baseball Players Association executive board meeting, said that implementation would be counterproductive to his goal of forging a new relationship between the players and owners.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- The euphoria that enveloped the baseball labor negotiations Friday was nowhere in evidence during yesterday's talks, but each side did establish a clear bargaining position -- for better or worse.Union officials cut about $5 million off the luxury tax threshold that they presented to the owners Friday. The owners presented a comprehensive proposal that looked in some ways like the settlement recommended early last month by special mediator William J. Usery, but was not similar enough to keep the union from accusing the owners of backtracking on several key issues.

Baseball's bitter labor dispute has defied two mediation attempts and the intervention of the president of the United States. Now, it is expected to skip past Congress like a sharp one-hopper and roll all the way to the wall.In the aftermath of Tuesday night's dramatic White ANALYSISHouse bargaining session, both sides claimed the moral high ground and both tried to play it to maximum public relations advantage.The players said that they were ready to go along with the administration's request for binding arbitration.

Orioles owner Peter Angelos said yesterday that he is confident the baseball labor dispute will be settled within two weeks, but added that his opinion is based on faith that both sides will see the wisdom of working out their differences before the 1995 season is damaged.Angelos, who made his surprisingly optimistic assessment on Channel 2 yesterday, said later that he has reason to believe the players and owners will resume negotiations within the framework recommended by special mediator William J. Usery.

Special mediator William J. Usery released a statement yesterday that apparently backs up the contention of the Major League Baseball Players Association that no formal proposal was recommended to either side before Tuesday's five-hour negotiating session at the White House.Major-league owners embraced Usery's recommendations and released the terms to the media, no doubt hoping to take full public relations advantage of their willingness to end the dispute. Union director Donald Fehr insisted that no formal proposal had been made, and yesterday asked Usery to clarify the situation.

Philadelphia Phillies star outfielder Len Dykstra broke ranks yesterday and became the first high-profile player to publicly question the stubborn bargaining strategy of the Major League Baseball Players Association.Dykstra, appearing on ESPN's "Up Front," bucked the union position and spoke in positive terms about the settlement recommendation made Tuesday by special mediator William J. Usery."If you ask me, I think that Usery tried to do what's best for both sides; he kind of, it looks like, cut everything in half," Dykstra said.

Baseball's bitter labor dispute has defied two mediation attempts and the intervention of the president of the United States. Now, it is expected to skip past Congress like a sharp one-hopper and roll all the way to the wall.In the aftermath of Tuesday night's dramatic White ANALYSISHouse bargaining session, both sides claimed the moral high ground and both tried to play it to maximum public relations advantage.The players said that they were ready to go along with the administration's request for binding arbitration.

WASHINGTON -- The presidential deadline passed and, of course, was replaced by another.Baseball's lengthy labor dispute is littered with well-intentioned deadlines such as the one the Clinton administration imposed on the negotiations 12 days ago. Most of them have been ignored or extended, just as this one was moved back to 3 p.m. today.Special mediator William J. Usery said that it was he who failed to meet yesterday's 5 p.m. target for a recommended settlement, but there were indications that the presidential effort to force an agreement was coming unraveled even as Labor Secretary Robert Reich scrambled to put a positive spin on the situation.

WASHINGTON -- Baseball's bitter labor dispute soon may be in the hands of the Clinton administration.Negotiations have slowed to a crawl, and special mediator William J. Usery announced yesterday that he will recommend a settlement to President Clinton late today if no last-minute deal can be reached."

Orioles owner Peter Angelos said yesterday that he is confident the baseball labor dispute will be settled within two weeks, but added that his opinion is based on faith that both sides will see the wisdom of working out their differences before the 1995 season is damaged.Angelos, who made his surprisingly optimistic assessment on Channel 2 yesterday, said later that he has reason to believe the players and owners will resume negotiations within the framework recommended by special mediator William J. Usery.

WASHINGTON -- Former Labor Secretary William Usery has accepted an invitation from President Clinton to mediate the baseball labor dispute, but the initial effect of the action may be to delay the resumption of serious negotiations.The players and owners have a bargaining session tentatively scheduled for Tuesday in New York, but Usery told reporters at a White House news briefing yesterday that he will need ample time to get up to speed on the stalled negotiations."I realize that this is a most difficult dispute," said the 70-year-old mediation specialist.

ATLANTA -- Special mediator William J. Usery said yesterday that he has urged ownership to back away from the threat to implement a salary cap, but baseball's long-running labor dispute still appears to be moving in that direction.Usery, who addressed a crowd of about 90 players during the second day of a Major League Baseball Players Association executive board meeting, said that implementation would be counterproductive to his goal of forging a new relationship between the players and owners.

RYE BROOK, N.Y. -- Negotiating teams in the Major League Baseball strike finally returned to the bargaining table yesterday, and both sides expressed hope that their six-hour discussion will be a prelude to more serious talks.Special mediator William J. Usery brought the bargaining units together at the Doral Arrowwood Conference Center outside New York for a series of meetings that could last through the weekend. No progress was reported but -- unlike previous attempts at negotiation -- both sides appeared eager to meet again today.