Abstract: |
This paper develops a bargaining model of wages and contract length as applied
to a professional sports league. Using data based on the recent Collective
Bargaining Agreement between players and owners in the National Hockey League,
I examine the effect of restrictions on player contracting on both the
mobility and salaries of players over the period 2005-2010. Using a variety of
estimators both for player mobility and salary determination, I find some
evidence that a player’s free agency status effects both mobility and player
salaries, but significantly less than might be expected. A key result is that
mobility needs to be taken into account when developing models of wage
determination in professional sports. |