Dartmouth Labor Case Gets Boost From Changed Legal Landscape

As the National Labor Relations Board considers whether the men’s basketball team at Dartmouth College should be classified as employees under federal labor law, legal observers say shifting attitudes among the public and the courts may tilt the scales in favor of athletes.

The last time a college sports team attempted to unionize was in 2014 when Northwestern University’s football team filed a representation petition with the NLRB. The board ultimately denied it, declining to assert jurisdiction over the team. The specific legal facts of the Dartmouth case, its membership in the Ivy League athletic conference, and the board’s Democratic ...