Labor Talks Resume Today

Baseball labor talks are scheduled to resume today, restarting the clock on negotiators trying to avert the sport’s ninth work stoppage in 30 years.

Owners and the Major League Baseball Players Assn. return to the table after brief discussions Saturday at the commissioner’s office, hoping to reestablish dialogue and complete an agreement before players strike Aug. 30.

Talks are stalled on two economic issues: increased revenue sharing and the payroll tax owners deem essential to restrain player salaries.

The union has agreed to the concept of a tax, but has proposed a much higher tax threshold and lower tax rate than owners will accept. The union views a payroll tax and revenue sharing as a salary cap by another name.

After the 1994 strike, which lasted 232 days, owners and players agreed to a luxury tax for the 1997, ’98 and ’99 seasons. But many owners considered the previous tax formula ineffective.

Management has proposed a tax of 37.5% to 50% on the portion of payrolls above $102 million. The union has offered a 15% to 30% tax to start on payrolls above $130 million, and has opposed a tax in the final year of the proposal.