Saw a report on this last night. Why do I get the feeling that the game we all love is about to be no more? If this passes, I see this as a huge first step in killing the game. On another note, if it does go through and the players come under the definition of employees, have they considered the fact that they would have to start paying taxes on the value of that scholarship? What am I missing here? From teh al. I am a gay twerker that has no balls!!!! I also have no idea how to use the quote function to post stories, so I annoy the piss out of others. I like male genatalia in and around my mouth.
College athletes are attempting to form a labor union to begin the formal process of being recognized as employees.
Ramogi Huma, president of the National College Players Association, filed a petition in Chicago with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on behalf of an undisclosed number of Northwestern football players. The move represents a significant step by college athletes to attempt to collectively bargain with the NCAA, universities and conferences.
If certified by the NLRB, the organization would be called the College Athletes Players Association (CAPA). Huma co-founded the organization with Northwestern quarterback Kain Colter and former Massachusetts basketball player Luke Bonner, the brother of NBA player Matt Bonner.
The organization is backed by the United Steelworkers union. A news conference is scheduled for today to announce "an overwhelming majority" of Northwestern football players have signed cards supporting a petition filed with the NLRB, according to a news release.
Huma told ESPN's Outside the Lines that the initial goals of the CAPA do not include a call for schools to pay salaries, but he did not rule out the possibility of the group seeking that type of compensation in the future. The ongoing Ed O'Bannon lawsuit against the NCAA filed by former and current players is seeking a 50-50 share of television revenue due to the use of athletes' names, images and likenesses on broadcasts.
Some goals listed on the CAPA web site include:
* Guaranteed coverage for sports-related medical expenses for current and former players.
* Minimizing the risk of sports-related traumatic brain injury. Reduce contact in practices, place independent concussion experts on the sidelines, and establish uniform return to play protocols.
* Improve graduation rates. Establish an educational trust fund to help former players complete their degree and reward those who graduate on time.
* Increase athletic scholarships and allow players to receive compensation for commercial sponsorships.
* Secure due process rights. Ensure players are not punished simply because they are accused of a rule violation, and any punishments should be consistent across campuses.
College athletes are not considered employees. The Colorado Supreme Court ruled in 1953 that a football player at the University of Denver was an "employee" within the context of the Colorado workers' compensation statute.
But for many decades, the NCAA has legally avoided paying worker's compensation benefits to athletes through successful wins in court. The NCAA's legal success stems from former NCAA executive director Walter Byers inventing the term "student-athlete" in 1964 for all NCAA rules as a defense from adverse legal rulings.
For instance, the Texas Worker's Compensation Commission ruled in 1993 that former TCU football player Kent Waldrep was a TCU employee when he suffered a debilitating injury and ordered the university's insurance company to pay Waldrep $70 a month for the rest of his life. The company balked, went to court, and a jury ruled Waldrep was not entitled to benefits.
Universities provide athletic scholarships as a source of compensation to athlete. The NCAA is attempting to pass a cost-of-attendance stipend for schools to choose to add beyond the current scholarship value. ESPN reported that through the years courts have recognized other students, such as graduate students who teach, as employees.
Former shoe marketer Sonny Vaccaro, a longtime critic of the NCAA, said the unionization attempt by athletes is a continued movement fought by players for many decades.
"And it came from a whole group, not an individual," Vaccaro said. "This is a very big thing. I think the athletes are more empowered than they've ever been. They can see how big intercollegiate athletics is. Strength is gathering. Players' lives cannot be controlled by commissioners' offices or in NCAA offices. It's just not the way it's going to be."
Vaccaro said if headway is not made to meet the goals of college athletes he could envision individual athletes or teams protesting games.
"Do I think maybe some day some of these teams or athletes won't show up for a major football or basketball game? More than any time in my life," Vaccaro said.
NCAA chief legal officer Donald Remy said in a statement that the attempt to turn college athletes into employees undermines getting an education, which he says is the purpose of college.
"Student-athletes are not employees, and their participation in college sports is voluntary," Remy said. "We stand for all student-athletes, not just those the unions want to professionalize. Many student-athletes are provided scholarships and many other benefits for their participation. There is no employment relationship between the NCAA, its affiliated institutions or student-athletes.
"Student-athletes are not employees within any definition of the National Labor Relations Act or the Fair Labor Standards Act. We are confident the National Labor Relations Board will find in our favor, as there is no right to organize student-athletes."
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