VOA教育报道2024--Are Student-athletes Considered College Employees?

Are Student-athletes Considered College Employees?

　　The Dartmouth College men's basketball team voted to join a labor¹ organization, called a union, this week.

　　The move means that the student-athletes on the team could have the right to negotiate² a working contract like other university employees.

　　In an election held by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the team members voted 13-2 to join Service Employees International Union Local 560. The same union also represents some workers at Dartmouth.

　　Cade Haskins and Romeo Myrthil are Dartmouth basketball players. The student-athletes said of the vote, "... we, as students, can also be both campus workers and union members. Dartmouth seems to be stuck in the past. It's time for the age of amateurism³ to end."

　　However, the school in Hanover, New Hampshire has already appealed the local NLRB decision. In a statement, Dartmouth said, "Classifying these students as employees simply because they play basketball is as unprecedented⁴ as it is inaccurate⁵."

　　The school also warned the students that unionizing could get the team removed from athletic⁶ competition.

　　Both sides have until March 12 to file objections with the NLRB. The case could also end up in federal court, which would likely delay the outcome⁷ for some time.

　　The Dartmouth vote is the latest effort by student-athletes to unionize and gain money and other rights in exchange for many hours spent practicing and playing sports.

　　In 2015, a local NLRB blocked an attempt by students on the football team at Northwestern University in Illinois to form a union. But the decision did not directly answer the question of whether student-athletes are employees.

　　Growth of college sports

　　The history of college students playing sports for their school goes back over 100 years.

　　The National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA, is the governing body for college sports. The organization has long said that its players are "student-athletes" who go to school mainly to study.

　　At first, students were not paid to play sports and were considered "amateurs⁸." Gradually, student-athletes from large universities started receiving money for housing, food and tuition⁹.

　　In recent years, American television networks have spent more money to broadcast college sports around the country and the world. The Big Ten, an athletic organization with college teams from the New York area to Los Angeles, reached an agreement in 2022 to broadcast its football and basketball games for $7 billion.

　　As college sports became popular, teams from large universities now regularly play in front of large crowds of up to 100,000 people. And some student-athletes have become even better known than professional athletes.

　　In 2021, the U.S. Supreme¹⁰ Court ruled that the NCAA could not prevent college athletes from getting paid by outside groups in return for the use of their name or image.

　　That opened the door for some college athletes to make lots of money. This year, one top student-athlete is Caitlin Clark, a basketball player at the University of Iowa. She set college scoring records and reportedly earns nearly $1 million a year for the use of her name and image.

　　The Dartmouth basketball players will never be famous enough to make that kind of money. One student-athlete said what he really wants from the union push is to get access to better healthcare so he can heal his basketball injuries.

　　What about Dartmouth?

　　Tony Clark is the head of the Major League Baseball Players Association. He said the vote gives the Dartmouth basketball players "a seat at the table and powerful voice."

　　One basketball coach whose team is very well known – Dan Hurley of the University of Connecticut – said some kind of union or players' organization is the future of college sports.

　　"These players are putting in incredible¹¹ work days, work weeks for five, six months," he said. "I think there's so much there that's going to have to be settled."

　　A 2015 legal case suggested athletes like the basketball players can spend up to 40 hours per week involved in their sports activities, leaving little time for study or work.

　　Haskins said he loves playing basketball. But he has had serious injuries to his ankle, hip¹² and shoulder while playing. "It is definitely a burden," he said.

　　Union interest among younger workers is growing, says the Economic Policy Institute. Workers under 45 joined unions at the highest rate in 2023.

　　Myrthil said he will talk about the union with new students who are coming next year. "We'll introduce them to the idea and what it means," he said. "And then hopefully it gets passed on."

　　Words in This Story

　　campus – n. the grounds or land upon which a school is built

　　amateurism – adj. participating in something, such as a sporting event, without being paid

　　classify – v. to consider something as part of a group with other similar items

　　unprecedented – adj. not existing or having been done before

　　tuition – n. the money paid to attend school

　　incredible – adj. hard to believe, not believable

　　burden – n. a heavy weight, used both literally and figuratively

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 negotiate   

v.洽谈，协商，谈判，顺利通过，成功越过

参考例句：

• I'll negotiate with their coach on the date of the match.我将与他们的教练磋商比赛的日期问题。
• I managed to negotiate successfully with the authorities.我设法同当局进行了成功的协商。

3 amateurism   

n.业余性，非职业的作为

参考例句：

• That is lo say, I am for amateurism in all fields. 换一句话说，我主张各方面的人士都有业余活动的习惯。 来自互联网

4 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

5 inaccurate   

adj.错误的，不正确的，不准确的

参考例句：

• The book is both inaccurate and exaggerated.这本书不但不准确，而且夸大其词。
• She never knows the right time because her watch is inaccurate.她从来不知道准确的时间因为她的表不准。

6 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

7 outcome   

n.结果，出口，演变

参考例句：

• The outcome of the experiment is in the lap of the gods.实验结果尚难预料。
• The outcome of the war is hard to foretell.战争胜负难以预卜。

8 amateurs   

n.业余爱好者( amateur的名词复数 )；外行，生手

参考例句：

• The tournament is open to both amateurs and professionals. 这次锦标赛业余选手和职业选手均可参加。
• The boss kissed the other performers off as mere amateurs. 老板认为其他的演员只有业余水平而把他们打发掉了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 tuition   

n.（某一学科的）教学，讲授，指导，学费

参考例句：

• Students can apply for individual tuition.学生可以申请个别指导。
• Is this money enough for the tuition fee?这些钱交学费够吗？

10 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

11 incredible   

adj.难以置信的，不可信的，极好的，大量的

参考例句：

• Some planets run at incredible speed.某些星球以难以置信的速度运行着。
• Her answer showed the most incredible stupidity.她的回答显示出不可思议的愚蠢。

12 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。