Dartmouth College Men’s Basketball Team Inches Closer to Becoming First Student-Athlete Union in Landmark NLRB Ruling
In a groundbreaking move, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has paved the way for members of Dartmouth College’s men’s basketball team to potentially establish the first collegiate student-athlete union in the United States.
The NLRB’s regional director in Boston has ordered a union election for the varsity men’s basketball team, presenting an opportunity for the athletes to join the Service Employees International Union Local 560, which already represents some employees at the Ivy League institution.
The NLRB justified its decision by stating that Dartmouth, by having the authority to control the work performed by the basketball team, and with players receiving compensation for their services, qualifies the athletes as employees. The move follows a petition filed by fifteen members of the Dartmouth men’s basketball team in September, seeking recognition as a union. Dartmouth College argued that the players are students, not employees, emphasizing their status as unpaid athletes in a program operating at a financial loss.
Contrary to Dartmouth’s potential historic move towards unionization, Northwestern University’s football team attempted a similar feat in 2014, but the NLRB rejected the petition. The NLRB’s decision then was commended by NCAA officials, including Donald Remy, the chief legal officer, who deemed it the “right call.” While the NLRB asserted that it would not intervene in the case, citing potential instability in labor relations, it refrained from taking a stance on whether student-athletes could be considered university employees, leaving the door open for future unionization endeavors.
The ongoing debate over amateurism in college sports reached a tipping point in 2021 when the Supreme Court, in NCAA v. Alston, declared that the NCAA’s rules restricting player compensation violated federal antitrust laws.
Subsequently, the NCAA revised its regulations, permitting student-athletes to receive payment for their name, image, and likeness, leading to a surge in lucrative brand deals for athletes. However, direct payment by schools to student-athletes, treating them as employees, is still prohibited, despite the benefits of college scholarships and other perks. In 2021, the NLRB asserted that athletes at private colleges, including Dartmouth, could be considered employees with the right to engage in collective bargaining, aiming to enhance their terms and conditions of employment.