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NLRB Rules Northwestern Football Players Cannot Unionize

issued a unanimous decision Monday that denies Northwestern football players the right to unionize.

The decision overturns a ruling from the NLRB's Chicago office, which said scholarship athletes of private institutions were university employees and had the right to unionize. Monday's decision does not make an official ruling on whether student-athletes are employees; it merely dismisses the NLRB's jurisdiction and thus the players' right to unionize.

In making its "narrowly focused" decision Monday, the labor board stated it did not believe allowing private institutions the right to unionize would create a more uniform working environment.