PWHL Players Association strengthens voice by affiliating with AFL-CIO and its 15 million workers

Women’s hockey players have taken the next major step to strengthen their voice in shaping the Professional Women’s Hockey League’s future by affiliating with the AFL-CIO at a time when their sport is more popular than ever.

The Professional Women’s Hockey League Players Association on Thursday became the 65th union to join America’s largest labor federation, which represents nearly 15 million workers. And the PWHLPA became the 10th players association to join the AFL-CIO’s sports council, which already includes unions representing NFL, NHL, major league baseball, WNBA and women’s soccer players.

The affiliation agreement was approved during meetings in Washington, D.C., and the timing coincides with women’s hockey enjoying a surge in momentum following the U.S. women’s team winning its third Olympic gold medal at the Milan Cortina Games last month.

“This isn’t a moment, it is a movement,” PWHLPA executive director Malaika Underwood told The Associated Press.

“I think this affiliation really reflects something our members have believed from the beginning," she added. “When athletes stand together and they work collectively, they can shape the future of their sport. And they are doing just that. It is amazing to be part of.”

Gaining affiliation for her 184 PWHL players was an objective Underwood pushed upon taking over the PWHLPA job nearly a year ago to the day. Underwood previously was a partner at the consulting firm OneTeam, which represented the commercial interests of many of the player associations already affiliated with the AFL-CIO.

She considered the PWHLPA joining as the next logical step in the union’s ascendency.

The women’s hockey association was formed when the league was first launched in the summer of 2023, and hailed for being the first women’s pro sports league to have a CBA in place before playing its first game.

The privately controlled PWHL began as a six-team league and has enjoyed considerable growth since. The league expanded by two teams last summer, with plans already in place to add as many as four more next season.

The league has also seen a ground-swell of popularity since players returned from the Olympics, with the PWHL enjoying numerous sellouts. And that includes the league announcing on Thursday that it has already sold out two upcoming games scheduled at New York City’s Madison Square Garden and Boston’s TD Garden.

Underwood stressed that while the PWHLPA and league have maintained a respectful and collaborative approach in shaping the league’s future, the affiliation with the AFL-CIO strengthens the union’s position. The partnership provides the PWHLPA additional resources and strength in numbers when advocating for its players at the bargaining table.

“These players have platforms, and they have a voice and power. And when they use it to advance workers’ issues, we all win,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler told the AP. “So I think connecting those common struggles has been at the root of why we think this partnership is so important.”

Shuler said the AFL-CIO has played a role in ongoing talks between the Women’s National Basketball Players Association and the WNBA, after the union opted out of the previous CBA. And she noted the clout women’s soccer players had in eliminating the college draft in reaching its latest collective bargaining agreement with the NWSL.

“When women athletes come together as workers, they don’t only elevate their own leagues, they raise the bar across all of women’s sports,” Shuler said.

The PWHL controls and operates each of its franchises, and is financed by Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter.

The league’s current CBA runs through 2031, with Underwood saying the union is open to whatever PWHL executives choose — whether deciding to re-open the deal early or allowing it to run its course.