The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB's) Chicago regional director issued a notable finding last week: Football players at Northwestern University are employees of the university for purposes of federal labor law. The legal finding, however, is the result of something even more striking. The overwhelming majority of the talented young men who have been awarded scholarships to play on the Northwestern football team expressed their desire to be represented by a union. And they turned to the College Athletes Players Association to file a petition with the NLRB asking for an election to bargain collectively with the university. 

No matter how the NLRB and federal courts ultimately rule, the players’ action is remarkable for what it says about young people, higher education and the role of unions.

It’s important first to understand where the players are coming from. Most Northwestern football players will never reach the NFL, yet they cannot take another job while on the team without athletic department approval. They are required to give the university the right to use their names and images in any manner it sees fit, contributing to the $5 million to $10 million in profit generated by the football program each year. But when it comes down to it, football is a tough, physical sport. And despite all of these contributions to the campus and community, football players are faced with the possibility of sustaining a career-ending, chronic injury without any guarantee the university will continue to provide essential medical care.

Liz Shuler