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35 Loy. L.A. Ent. L. Rev. [i] (2014-2015)

handle is hein.journals/laent35 and id is 1 raw text is: LOYOLA OF LOS ANGELES ENTERTAINMENT LAW REVIEW VOLUME THIRTY-FIVE 2014-2015 NUMBER ONE TABLE OF CONTENTS ARTICLES FULL COURT PRESS: NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY, A NEW CHALLENGE TO THE NCAA by William B. Gould IV, Glenn M Wong, and Eric Weitz .................................. 1 In recent years, a host of issues have arisen between the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the college athletes who provide the labor from which the NCAA and its member universities derive their profits. Many of these issues have been heavily publicized and have spurred a heated debate over the status of college athletes and the future of the collegiate athletic system. This Article primarily fo- cuses on the issue of college athletes' status as employees for purposes of federal la- bor law. The significant increase in the popularity of college sports in recent years has led to conference realignment, facility building and arms race, governance issues and litigation. The student-athletes, the players in the highly lucrative college foot- ball and basketball games have been left behind. They have resorted to challenging the NCAA's system in many different ways. Recently, football players at North- western University successfully petitioned their local Regional Director of the Na- tional Labor Relations Board for a union representation election, arguing that they are employees of the University and as such are entitled to collective bargaining rights and other protections under the National Labor Relations Act. Northwestern University has rejected this argument and has appealed the Regional Director's deci- sion to the National Labor Relations Board in Washington, D.C. This Article pro- vides a background for the highly contested dispute, refutes some of the common arguments made against the potential unionization of college athletics, and discusses some of the potential implications if players can and do form a union.