Football players at Northwestern University have cleared the first major hurdle in their closely watched unionization effort, with an official of the National Labor Relations Board determining that the players are employees and thus eligible to vote in a union election.
Peter S. Ohr, regional director for the agency's Chicago office, issued a ruling Wednesday saying that the players met the necessary criteria to qualify as employees under the National Labor Relations Act. The players' case largely hinged on the argument that an athletic scholarship constitutes a form of payment in exchange for work -- a point of view that Ohr evidently agreed with.
"Clearly, the Employer's players perform valuable services for their Employer," Ohr wrote in his decision, referring to Northwestern. "The Employer was able to utilize this economic benefit provided by the services of its football team in any manner it chose. Less quantifiable but also of great benefit to the Employer is the immeasurable positive impact to Northwestern's reputation a winning football team may have on alumni giving and increase in number of applicants for enrollment at the University."
Ohr's ruling does not necessarily mean the players will be able to unionize, and Northwestern and the NCAA will have more opportunities to make their case that the players are not employees. Wednesday's decision will almost certainly be appealed to the five-member labor board in Washington. Even that decision could be taken up in the federal court system.
But the ruling nonetheless hands a major victory to the players' would-be union, the College Athletes Players Association, and the United Steelworkers union, which has backed the players' campaign.
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Peter S. Ohr, regional director for the agency's Chicago office, issued a ruling Wednesday saying that the players met the necessary criteria to qualify as employees under the National Labor Relations Act. The players' case largely hinged on the argument that an athletic scholarship constitutes a form of payment in exchange for work -- a point of view that Ohr evidently agreed with.
"Clearly, the Employer's players perform valuable services for their Employer," Ohr wrote in his decision, referring to Northwestern. "The Employer was able to utilize this economic benefit provided by the services of its football team in any manner it chose. Less quantifiable but also of great benefit to the Employer is the immeasurable positive impact to Northwestern's reputation a winning football team may have on alumni giving and increase in number of applicants for enrollment at the University."
Ohr's ruling does not necessarily mean the players will be able to unionize, and Northwestern and the NCAA will have more opportunities to make their case that the players are not employees. Wednesday's decision will almost certainly be appealed to the five-member labor board in Washington. Even that decision could be taken up in the federal court system.
But the ruling nonetheless hands a major victory to the players' would-be union, the College Athletes Players Association, and the United Steelworkers union, which has backed the players' campaign.
from Chicago - The Huffington Post http://ift.tt/1htfC4A
via IFTTT
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