Northwestern players cast secret ballots in union vote

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Omaha World Herald-AP

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — In a historic vote, Northwestern football players cast secret ballots Friday on whether to form the nation's first union for college athletes — a decision that could change the landscape of American amateur sports.

“You got to give the people what they want!” one of the players shouted at reporters, who were kept away from the players as they entered a campus building to vote. Some waved and another busted out dance moves.

Results of the unprecedented vote won't be revealed any time soon. After the vote, the ballot boxes will be sealed for weeks or months — perhaps even years — as the university challenges the effort to unionize the football team.

The full National Labor Relations Board agreed Thursday to hear the school's appeal of a regional director's March ruling that the players are employees and as such can unionize. Ballots will be impounded until that process is finished, and a court fight could come after that decision.

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://www.omaha.com/article/20140425/SPORTS/140429189/1001#northwestern-players-cast-secret-ballots-in-union-vote

[Cooley Hurd]

1. Kicking and Recommending

:kick:

[big_dog]

2. god speed Northwestern Wildcats!

[Teamster Jeff]

3. K&R

The NCAA brought this on themselves with their random enforcement of many stupid rules. God forbid an athlete accepts a free piece of pizza.

[Blue_Tires]

7. The NCAA brought this on themselves because they're corrupt little shits

pulling in billions (along with their commercial sponsors) annually while the players don't get a nickel...

The NFL and NBA have enabled this culture for decades by refusing to have a real, honest-to-god minor league system (with real support) to develop players and coaches for the next level like MLB and the NHL...

[Overseas]

4. K&R. Yes please!

[socialist_n_TN]

5. Always got a kick for solidarity..........

[Starry Messenger]

6. k&r

[Blue_Tires]

8. I'm glad to see the players taking a stand

But I do think the better, more forceful course of action would have been to take the NCAA to Federal Court...

[24601]

9. That it will change the landscape of college athletics I have no doubt. There will be no more

full scholarships. There will be "almost full" scholarships that do not qualify under the ruling. Every Division I athlete will have to pay something. But on the matter of an individual's likeness, that should belong only to the individual. Schools will of course counter that you may not license your likeness wearing any school trademarked uniform or logo.

Final score (as a percent o the total payout): Players 0, Schools 0, Lawyers 100.

[quadrature]

10. who votes?... who decides who votes?

current on scholarship
walkons
JV
recent alum
not so recent alum
other sports
.............
who decided that?
some court
Local !2 VTS Union
somebody else?

[Omaha Steve]

11. NYT: Waiting Game Follows Union Vote by Northwestern Players

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/26/sports/northwestern-football-players-cast-votes-on-union.html?hpw&rref=sports

By BEN STRAUSS

EVANSTON, Ill. — Northwestern’s scholarship football players voted Friday on whether to certify the first union in college sports, a landmark day that was closely watched by the N.C.A.A., college administrators and politicians across the country.

The election was ordered by a National Labor Relations Board official last month when he ruled that Northwestern’s scholarship football players were employees, meaning that they, like other workers, had the right to form a union and that they could be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, unemployment insurance and some portion of the revenue generated by college sports.

FULL story at link.

[quadrature]

12. thanks for that info...nt