Rick Allen Questions Witness About The Reclassification Of Student-Athletes As ‘Employees’

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During a House Education and the Workforce Committee hearing prior to the congressional recess, Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA) questioned Daniel L. Nash, a shareholder at Littler, about the reclassification of student-athletes.

Transcript

00:00Under Rule Committee Rule 9, we will now question witnesses under the five-minute rule.

00:06I will recognize myself for five minutes.

00:10Mrs. Wynn, you said in your written testimony that as former co-chair of Division I Student Athletic Advisory Committee,

00:16you had the opportunity to speak with hundreds of student-athletes to express fears about what employment status could mean for them

00:22and the future of college sports.

00:24What were some of the top concerns you heard from your peers?

00:27Thank you for the question.

00:31The top concern from the student-athletes I've spoken to is the ongoing threat of cutting athletic opportunity

00:38for thousands of student-athletes to pay for the student-athletes that generate the most revenue,

00:44which would ultimately create an uneven playing field between the athletes.

00:49Another fear is the potential decline in the prioritization of academics.

00:57Sorry.

00:58Most student-athletes who play in college do not go on to play professionally and choose their schools to pursue academics.

01:05We fear becoming employees would put a substantial emphasis on job security through athletic performance

01:11over the current academic eligibility-centric model.

01:16Mr. Nash, like other college students, student-athletes must satisfy certain academic standards to gain admission to their universities

01:24and to participate in extracurricular activities, including their sport.

01:29If student-athletes are deemed to be employees under the National Labor Relations Act,

01:35could grade point averages or course credit requirements become subjects of collective bargaining?

01:42Thank you, Chairman Allen.

01:44We don't know the answer to that, and nor do the advocates of converting student-athletes to employees

01:53and attempting to have collective bargaining.

01:56It is certainly conceivable that the academic rules that apply to student-athletes

02:03and how they're enforced and other rules, other rules related to their education

02:09and the academic environment would be subjects of bargaining.

02:12Those are things that are just simply not present in the professional sports leagues.

02:17Could this unionization undermine academic standards?

02:21In other words, the young people would prioritize their work responsibilities over actually getting an education

02:29when less than 2% of these young people go on to play in professional sports?

02:33I think the reality of that is probably obvious, right?

02:38I think almost certainly if we're talking about what is essentially making the student-athletes on these sports as professionals,

02:47that's going to be the focus, not academics.

02:51Right. Thank you.

02:53Ms. McWilliams-Parker, fewer than 2% of NCAA student-athletes turn professional in their respective sports,

03:00as I mentioned earlier.

03:01What impact would employee status have on ensuring these college athletes can continue to focus first and foremost on being students

03:10and on their academic success to make sure that they have successful careers after college?

03:17Look, this conversation about, particularly for our HBCUs and our smaller institutions,

03:24I mean, I'm highly concerned about employment because the fact of the matter,

03:29our institutions were built in this country to give us an education.

03:33Athletics is an ancillary opportunity to allow our students to engage way beyond just getting their degree.

03:39Making them employees or changing that status, it really changes the opportunities that we get to create at our institutions

03:45and our smaller schools, being able to give them the resources that they need for academic support,

03:51for travel, for uniforms, all those things that are important and necessary,

03:56especially for students that are first-generational students.

03:59So I hope we never lose the focus of why education was established in this country in the first place.

04:06Athletics has just been the benefit that we all have.

04:09It's a privilege to be able to be a college student-athlete,

04:12and I hope we don't take that away from them.

04:15Yes, so many young people have been able to get their education

04:18and also participate in their sport of choice on the field

04:25and then go on to very successful careers.

04:32And whatever we do as members of Congress, we want to keep that as the first priority.

04:39And I think that's it behind the scenes here.

04:44We're putting other things first, like collective bargaining, unionization,

04:50and employee status, and all these other things.

04:54And I think we've got to work to make sure that academics is priority one.

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