In Reply to: Is it legal for Mara to get NIL $? posted by ClockBlocker on March 26, 2025 at 09:43:52
"In a decision from February concerning the Dartmouth men’s basketball team’s demand for union representation through Service Employees International Union Local 560, the NLRB’s regional director for Region 1 found that, in effect, student-athletes are employees who perform work through their school-sponsored athletic activity. The decision is still subject to review by the Board, but it may suggest that international student-athletes should be able to profit from their NIL (in connection with their athletic pursuits) without putting their visa status in jeopardy. The decision also shows a potential inconsistency in the way federal agencies define student-athlete “work.”
More recently, in July, the Third Circuit in Johnson v. NCAA was presented with the question of whether collegiate student-athletes could be considered employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The court ultimately found that it was at least plausible for student-athletes to be employees of their schools after applying a new four-part test. Notably, there was no determination that student-athletes are employees under the FLSA, as the court only found that the class action brought by former student-athletes could survive the NCAA’s motion to dismiss. Nonetheless, the court’s reasoning at least acknowledged the possibility that student-athletes could be performing compensable work in their roles on school-sponsored teams."