Do sports teams provide less injury protection for players with temporary contracts?

Research in Economic Inquiry reveals that Major League Baseball teams appear to manage player injuries differently depending on contract status, with players on temporary contracts missing significantly fewer games due to injury. This suggests that teams may invest less in the long-term health of non-permanent players.

For the study, investigators analyzed 2009–2017 data, with 4,125 observations for 1,184 unique players, so that the average player had available data for approximately 3.5 years.

The findings raise important questions about fairness, risk management, and the treatment of temporary workers—issues that resonate beyond sports and into broader employment practices.

“If we see less investment in the health of professional athletes employed on a temporary basis, workers who often generate significant economic value for teams, one can only wonder about the levels of investment in the health of temporary workers in other industries,” said corresponding author Richard Paulsen, PhD, of the University of Michigan. “Firms have little incentive to prioritize the well-being of interns and other temporary workers—if these workers burn out from working long hours, any long-term consequences will likely not be the current firm’s problem.”

URL upon publication: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ecin.70016

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