Economic Research On The Labor Market Of Professional Sports

Professional sports are defined as service industry whereby they offer high level sports performance, for which any other performing arts can not substitute, to meet the unique aesthetic enjoyment of customers, the operation of which comes with exchange of funds, manpower, substance, and information in capital market, labor market, and product market, and the survival and development of which are closely linked to the three markets above. As the core resource of professional sports, labor force has particularity in supply, demand, and pricing, concomitant with the particularity of labor market of professional sports.Based on the framework of labor economics, in combination with the specific practice of National Basketball Association, and from the perspective of supply and demand in the labor market of professional sports by literature review, historical research, mathematical statistics, and case studies, this study analyzes the formation of equilibrium employment and salary in different market structure, the operation of labor union and the attainment of collective bargaining agreement, and influencing factors and evaluation criteria of salary, explores the investment of human capital and on-the-job training, and clarifies the trend of labor flow and the formation of international market in professional sports.The purpose of this study is to integrate the fundamental view of professional sports and the research on labor market, complete the integrated and consistent economic analysis of the labor market of professional sports from supply and demand to equilibrium, and realize an overall micro-research on the labor market of professional sports.The main conclusions are as follows:1.The labor cost during the procedure of production in professional sports has the quality of alternative and nonequilibrium. Labor force of professional sports has the characteristics of heterogeneity, low-level alternative, scarcity, risk, timeliness, loss, and cumulation. Labor market has the characteristics of natural segmentation and hierarchy.2.The demand curve of labor force on the enterprise-industry level in professional sports is inelastic. High-level athletes will substitute others for opportunities of employment when the level of employment is set.3. Aggregate social supply curve of professional sports is inelastic. The higher level athletes reach, the less salary elasticity of supply is.4. The influence of minimum employment on the profits of club depends on the relation between minimum employment and maximum profits of employment. League and labor union are both sides of labor and capital in the bilateral monopoly of labor market of professional sports, and employment and salary fluctuate in a certain range according to the bargaining ability of two sides.5. Salary of professional sports athlete has the characteristics of high criteria, short period, and great difference. Escrow arrangement can cause a rise and reduction in salary, directly influencing on the salary of athlete; salary cap confines the range of bargaining between athlete and proprietor, indirectly influencing on the salary of athlete; salary cap and Luxury tax decrease the desire of team for athlete by offering high salary, indirectly influencing on the salary of athlete.6. Expenses of professional sports athlete for general training are commonly paid by athlete at expense of the reduction of salary rate; expenses of professional sports athlete for special training are commonly paid by employer, and those whose playing time is less can receive higher payment rate.7.Professional sports embody the dual internationalization of resource market and product market. The flow of professional sports products for spectators generally presents a trend of unidirectional flow from the high level to the low level in competitive level. The flow of labor force in professional sports shows the trend of flowing from the states, nations, and regions of weaker economic strength to those of stronger economic strength as a whole.