Athletes’ Hail-Mary Bid for Union Tests U.S. Meaning of Employee
SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 15: of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish of the Northwestern Wildcats at Notre Dame Stadium on November 15, 2014 in South Bend, Indiana. Northwestern defeated Notre Dame 43-40 in overtime.
Photographer: Jonathan Daniel/Getty ImagesU.S. regulators are poised to decide two closely watched cases that have the potential to reshape labor laws by allowing college football players to unionize and forcing companies to take more responsibility for contractors.
The National Labor Relations Board may decide the cases as soon as this week, and the prospect of change is already rankling university presidents and business leaders. One case concerns contract workers at a recycling facility who are trying to draw the owner into labor negotiations. The other would answer a petition from football players at Northwestern University seeking scholarship and medical benefits.