InfluenceWatch Podcast #260: Are Unions Coming to College Sports?

In late 2021, following a class action suit in which the Supreme Court decided some college athletes should be allowed to earn money off their image and likeness, a Biden administration lawyer with the National Labor Relations Board named Jennifer Abruzzo issued a memo clarifying that some college athletes could now be considered employees of state universities.

This memo led to breathless articles from well-known, hard left outlets like In These Times arguing that employees of the state designation meant potential unionization of college athletes and, as In These Times said, “a new progressive institution powerful enough to bend the South to its will.”

This idea gained traction in December of last year when the NLRB determined that the Pac 12 Conference and the University of Southern California were indeed employers of athletes at the school and were violating the law by failing to treat student basketball and football players as employees.

Joining me today to discuss sports unions and the possibility of collective bargaining at the collegiate level is my colleague Mike Watson.
Listen to “Episode 260: Are Unions Coming to College Sports?” on Spreaker.