College Athletes: A Case Study

Since it seems like the universities and NCAA are unwilling to examine their case college athletes are taking matters into their own hands. At a Northwestern University, a Division I college in Chicago, these players became tired of not receiving any compensation aside from their scholarships and they made a decision that made the NCAA realize they were serious. They were aware that suing for compensation could be a losing battle they took the next step. What these players decided the best thing to do was unionize in a way similar to employees and demand the rights that they deserve. After their coach told them that they were unable to do this they took the issue to the National Labor Relations Board (NLBR) and what happened next was a giant
College Athletes Players Association, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)…recently found that scholarship football players from Northwestern University are “employees” under Section 2(3) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and ordered that an election be conducted so that eligible football players (i.e., all who receive grant-in aid scholarships and have not exhausted their NCAA playing eligibility) can vote whether to form a union. (37)
Although these players are only able to unionize and have not been granted official compensation outside their scholarship this is still a very important step. This could be one of the solutions to solving the problem that college athletes are not receiving any form of payment apart from their scholarships for playing. If other Division I athletes follow in Northwestern’s example and affirm their rights the NCAA might began to take notice and realize that this issue is not going to go
The NCAA is not providing them with any form of compensation besides possible scholarships; this is not enough. The NCAA has set up strict by-laws that have prevented athletes from receiving compensation or even having the opportunity. They claim that because these athletes are students and maintain and armature status they do not should not receive a stipend. However, the universities these colleges are attending are seeing positive results such as coaches receiving wage raises and money from athletic department funds covering other deficits within the university. Some steps that can be taken is examining the by-laws of the NCAA and trying to modify them in a way that is beneficial for the athletes, the university and the NCAA. Players could be allowed to receive endorsements where they can make their own separate money away from the university and the NCAA. Another solution is taking some of the money these players are earning from tournaments and putting it into the pockets of the winning team’s players. Lastly these college athletes must realize that they have rights and if they feel they are being treated unfairly they can try to unionize to show the NCAA the seriousness of this situation. College athletes deserve to earn compensation, NCAA, a billion-dollar industry, and the universities these athletes are paying for can afford to