Sources: Suns told employees not to sue team

"But a four-page Part B - "Confidential information, Intellectual Property, and Dispute Resolution Agreement - was new, team sources said. The contents were described as contractual obligations, and the document noted that agreeing to them was "a condition of your offer of employment and/or continued employment." Employees were asked to head to an external website to acknowledge their understanding and acceptance of Parts A and B of the handbook."

"Under the passage focused on dispute resolution, which followed a passage on confidential information, the document stated that the Suns and employees would "agree all legal disputes and claims identified below shall be determined exclusively by final and binding individual arbitration." It further stated that the provision would last beyond that employee's employment with the company."

The Phoenix Suns faced several lawsuits from current and former employees and required staff this spring to sign an updated two-part employee handbook as a condition of continued employment. Employees were emailed on May 27 and given three days to review and accept the handbook via an external website. Part A spanned about 50 pages and covered policies similar to the prior 63-page handbook, including diversity, equity and inclusion, workplace respect, benefits and arena rules. Part B was a new four-page Confidential Information, Intellectual Property and Dispute Resolution Agreement described as contractual obligations and framed acceptance as a condition of employment. The dispute-resolution provision mandated final, binding individual arbitration for identified legal disputes and stated the provision would survive beyond an employee's termination.

Read at ESPN.com