Editing Jim Bunning (section)

==Players union involvement==
From the mid-1960s until his retirement from baseball, Bunning was active in the [[Major League Baseball Players Association]] (MLBPA), and played a major role in transforming the organization into one of the country's most successful labor unions.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dreier |first=Peter |date=May 31, 2017 |title=The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union Stimulated by the Death of Jim Bunning |url=http://www.alternet.org/culture/media-ignore-jim-bunnings-militant-union-days |work=AlterNet |location=Berkeley, CA |ref={{sfnRef|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}} |access-date=June 4, 2017 |archive-date=June 5, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170605073427/http://www.alternet.org/culture/media-ignore-jim-bunnings-militant-union-days |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Though the MLBPA had been formed in the early 1950s as an attempt to improve pay, benefits, and working conditions for players, team owners were still largely able to impose their will on the players by acting in concert to limit salaries and refrain from offering first rate [[employee benefits]] and working conditions, such as suitable stadium locker rooms and a [[per diem]] allowance to pay for meals while traveling for [[Road (sports)|away games]].{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  At the time, the starting salary was about $47,000 in current dollars ($6,000 in 1965), and the average salary was about $112,000 ($14,000 in 1965).{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  As a result, many players had to work in the off season.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  The owners also offered a substandard pension plan which provided low payments to retirees, and for which most players were ineligible.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  Many spring training playing fields were unsafe, and lodging and dining facilities were often racially segregated.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}

Bunning became active with the MLBPA early in his career, including serving as the pension representative for the American League players and a member of the union's executive board.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  In 1965, Bunning joined with [[Robin Roberts (baseball)|Robin Roberts]], a founder of the MLBPA, to hire a full-time executive director.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}} They agreed on [[Marvin Miller]], then an economist with the [[United Steelworkers]].{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  They convinced the players union to hire Miller, and he remained in the position until 1983.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  Under Miller's direction, in 1968 the MLBPA negotiated its first [[collective bargaining]] agreement with the owners, which put the players on the path to improved salaries, benefits, and working conditions.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  By the time Bunning retired, the minimum salary and average salary for major league players had nearly doubled.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  By 2015, the minimum salary was over $500,000 and the average salary was over $4 million.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  Over time, the MLBPA also succeeded at eliminating the [[reserve clause]] and Major League Baseball's exemption from [[United States antitrust law|antitrust laws]].{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}  As a result, players were able to negotiate for the right to veto trades, as well as the right to declare [[free agent|free agency]] and offer their services to the highest bidder.{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}

After retiring, Bunning represented players individually as a [[sports agent|player agent]]. He eventually represented as many as 30 players at one time.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fitzpatrick |first1=Frank |title=Hall of Fame Phillies pitcher, former U.S. Senator Jim Bunning dies at 85 |url=https://www.inquirer.com/philly/sports/phillies/Phillies-Hall-of-Fame-Jim-Bunning-pitcher-Senator-Kentucky-dies.html |access-date=January 28, 2021 |work=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] |date=May 27, 2017}}</ref>

At the time of Bunning's death, [[Tony Clark]], then serving as MLBPA's executive director, praised Bunning's union activities: "Recognizing the need to ensure that all players receive fair representation in their dealings with major league club owners, Jim, along with a number of his peers, helped pave the way for generations of players."{{sfn|"The Fascinating Story of Major League Baseball's Players Union"}}