Atsuya Furuta

The move -- which occurred on the same day that the two clubs finalized their basic merger agreement of Aug. 10 -- came after baseball officials turned down a series of demands by the association, including a call for a special committee to handle contractual issues for the players affected by the merger.

The association, a labor union, has been demanding that not only club management but players' representatives take part in any decision-making processes of such a committee.

The suit was filed by association head Atsuya Furuta of the Yakult Swallows as well as Koichi Isobe and Takashi Miwa, who represented the players of Kintetsu and Orix.

In the documents filed with the court, the association demands that the two Pacific League clubs and Nippon Professional Baseball, pro baseball's governing body, let it conduct collective negotiations on a range of merger-related issues.

The Japan Times Weekly: Sept. 4, 2004
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