NLRB Rules Northwestern Football Players Are "Employees" and Can Unionize!
This ruling comes two months after the Northwestern football team signed union cards to allow the College Athletes Players Association (CAPA), a new labor organization, to petition for an election so that CAPA could collectively bargain on behalf of the players.
CAPA's legal fees were paid for by the United Steelworkers Union. CAPA lawyers made a compelling case that Northwestern football players are employees. They pointed out that the players perform valuable services for Northwestern University. They have substantial football-related responsibilities year-round, performed under the strict supervision and control of the Northwestern coaches and athletic department staff. Their football activities are separate from the players' academic pursuits as students at the university. In return for their football services, the players are compensated by the university through scholarships that a player receives only because he is a football player, which he will lose if he withdraws from the team. Northwestern football players are not complaining about this arrangement, but they are accurately asserting that this is an employee-employer relationship. The Regional Director agreed with CAPA's legal arguments and found that the extensive hearing record supported CAPA.