The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has unanimously ruled that Northwestern University’s football players may not form a union, overturning a March 2014 decision by a regional NLRB director.
The NLRB ruling did not make a determination about whether or not the players are employees of the university, allowing for the possibility that other college athletes — or graduate students — may form unions in the future. Had the Board approved the unionization bid, the ruling could have led to votes at other private institutions. As it stands, the secret (sealed) ballots Northwestern players cast more than a year ago will be destroyed.