Carolina Panthers offensive tackle Russell Okung said he will fight the dismissal of an unfair labor claim he filed against the NFL Players Association.
In March, he filed a claim alleging the union’s leadership violated the group’s constitution during the negotiating of a new collective bargaining agreement with the NFL. Players eventually narrowly approved the new CBA, which lasts through the 2030 season.
The National Labor Relations Board dismissed the claim last week.
“The contents of my NLRB claim and the reality of my experience threatens the very fabric and culture of the NFLPA,” Okung wrote Monday on Twitter. “Telling the truth continues to be the only weapon in the face of plainly corrupt systems and structures. As feeble and costly as this act can feel, my personal integrity is worth preserving.
“Ongoing gaslighting of NFL players is the modern equivalent of walking through the valley of the shadow of death; creating fear is the goal. The ‘dismissal’ of my claim changes nothing about the facts it contains and the reality of my experience.”
He added he will use his appeal of the NLRB decision to continue to “chip away at systemic corruption” in the union.
The 32-year-old Okung, who is entering his 11th season in the NFL, contended DeMaurice Smith, the NFLPA’s executive director, and leadership ignored recommendations of the players’ executive committee that the proposed CBA be modified before sending it to players for a vote.
“Asked to consider the proposed CBA, the Executive Committee recognized the proposal’s failings and the need for amplification of certain provisions, and voted not to send the proposal to the rank and file. The NFLPA staff leadership, in violation of its duties, ignored the Executive Committee, and sent the proposal to the membership for a vote.”
