Since the inception of player unions, player salaries have increased dramatically. The salaries of baseball players went from a minimum of $6,000 in 1966 to a $400,000 major league minimum in 2009. This is a result of their commitment to collective bargaining. (1) Unions can promote cooperation and compromise between players and management. For instance, the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) negotiated to create the first salary cap rules in professional sports in 1983. (1)
Some argue that players make too much money and that union bosses also make too much. For example, in the case of Gene Upshaw, who made 6.7 million dollars a year, athletes and fans alike have protested that the union takes too much money without delivering its promises. Others argue that the increased cost of higher player salaries only gets passed on to the fans. (1)