Teamsters to help fighters’ welfare

Dean Juipe

Tuesday, May 13, 2003 | 8:56 a.m.

It's a subject that periodically surfaces and attracts speculation, yet it took Eddie Mustafa Muhammad to bring to it fruition.

As of Monday, his Joint Association of Boxers has become affiliated with the Teamsters union and will attempt to organize fighters in an effort to provide them with such items as health insurance and pensions.

"We as fighters step into the ring and don't know if we're going to step out," he said. "We have no health benefits, no insurance, no nothing. If something were to happen, who would take care of our families?

"Everybody talks a good game on this but I felt I had to step to the plate. I want this to work."

Muhammad, who as Eddie Gregory won the World Boxing Association light heavyweight championship in 1980, is a local trainer and longtime community activist. He worked behind the scenes in forming JAB and spent last week in New York and Washington, D.C., building support for its concepts.

"I'm off and running," he said. "This could revolutionize the whole game."

JAB will attempt to enlist fighters and ask them to donate 2 percent of their fight purses to a fund to be managed by the Teamsters. Fighters at the upper echelon of the sport will have a cap on their contributions.

The Teamsters will represent JAB in an attempt to gain a collective bargaining agreement with promoters.

International Boxing Federation heavyweight champion Chris Byrd is among those who has thrown his support behind the idea. Teamsters president James P. Hoffa and U.S. Sen. John McCain have also aligned themselves with the concept.

"We're not going to hit anybody over the head if they don't want to join," Muhammad said. "It's voluntary. But here's a chance for fighters to get insurance and have a pension fund and have access to jobs after they retire through the Teamsters."