Maybe Major College Athletes Do Need a Union...
November 02, 2015
I'm pretty much on the record as being pro-employer when it comes to unions and American business. After all, union representation doesn't do much for high performers, protects a lot of bad apples and robs businesses of the flexibility they need to make adjustments on the fly.
Those beliefs of mine held up when some Northwestern football players petitioned the NLRB last year to become eligible for union representation. They get more value than they think, went the train of thought.... A college education is worth more than we give it credit for, I said.
Well, wait one second. Maybe college athletes do need representation. Ohio State just pulled the scholarship of a wayward son who has done a lot to help the football program get paid in the last year. More from ESPN:
"In addition to a one-game suspension, Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett will also lose his scholarship for a term as part of his discipline for his arrest during the bye week, Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer said Monday.
Meyer said he reviewed the facts from the citation for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and backing without safety. He was stopped at a Columbus police checkpoint early Saturday morning.
An Ohio State spokesman confirmed to ESPN that Barrett's financial aid would be forfeited for the 2016 summer term.
Barrett, a redshirt sophomore, is scheduled for arraignment Friday for the misdemeanor charges, according to Franklin County records.
According to school policy, Barrett was not subject to any suspension as a first-time offender of the alcohol testing for underage students, but he will miss Ohio State's home game Saturday against Minnesota, once again thrusting Cardale Jones back into the starting lineup."
I'm aware of the seriousness of a DUI. How many kids at Ohio State with other types of grants that got DUIs had scholarship money pulled this year? Try none, because the university isn't aware that they were even charged.
OSU makes millions off their football program. JT Barrett has been a big part of that in the last year. You're pulling a scholarship for a term as a result of a legal issue that hasn't even played out in the courts yet?
That sounds like someone who needs representation in the worst way. He can't walk to another program as a result of NCAA transfer rules, and there's no one around to put some resistance up as OSU tries to buy Urban Meyer some PR for having one of the worst incarceration records in NCAA history while he was at Florida.
So he sits a game and gets aid pulled. Sitting one or more games I like. Getting scholarship money pulled when the OSU athletic program made $145M last year?
That sounds like someone who needs representation.
This might not be a bad idea. Most people don't realize that athlete's don't get 4 year scholarships, they get 1 year with the chance for renewal. If they suffer a career ending injury, they will have helped generate millions on dollars for the school, and be left with nothing
Posted by: Nathan Stowe | November 02, 2015 at 02:25 PM
They don't need union representation, they need to be paid. This doesn't feel right because he adds a alot value (aka money) into the pockets of Ohio State then he doesn't get paid, so it's not right to affect his pocket book. If he were paid the logic would be different. He's paid what he's worth, he makes a mistake and he gets penalized. If the union could get him paid then you're right.
Posted by: Joshua Westbrook | November 02, 2015 at 06:46 PM
Well put. Totally agree. And I'm typically anti union too.
Posted by: Karen K | November 03, 2015 at 10:58 PM