Earlier today the federal agency that regulates unions dismissed a request made by the football players at Northwestern University to unionize, NBC News reports.
The debate over whether college athletes should be compensated in a more monetary fashion has gained steam in recent years as school revenue has spiked for certain sports. But this unanimous ruling by the National Labor Relations Board proved that the college sports establishment, specifically the NCAA, is still in the driver seat when it comes to doling out benefits to student athletes.
In March 2014, the scholarship players at Northwestern, in Evanston, Illinois were recognized as university employees with the right to unionize by a regional NLRB official.
However, the full board dismissed this claim today on the grounds that it does not meet a crucial federal law - promoting stability in labor relations.
Monday's decision conceded that the student players have a legitimate quarrel with the current system; that in many ways NCAA Division I football "does resemble a professional sport in a number of relevant ways," most obviously that college football generates huge sums of money for individual schools.
But the NLRB does not have any jurisdiction over public sector employers, thus allowing the Northwestern players to unionize having no impact on 108 of the 125 other colleges and universities in Division I football.
"In other contexts, the Board's assertion of jurisdiction helps promote uniformity and stability, but in this case, asserting jurisdiction would not have that effect," the ruling said.
However, the debate may me moving toward some type of positive result as the NLRB noted that conditions for the Northwestern players appear to be improving, saying "that the situation of scholarship players may well change in the future."
In a written statement, Northwestern expressed gratitude to its football players for "bringing national attention to these important issues," but stood by their stance that forming a union and demanding collective bargaining" are not the appropriate methods to address the concerns."
