Trump signs order to clarify college athletes’ employment status amid NIL chaos

WASHINGTON AP President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order mandating that federal administration clarify whether college athletes can be considered employees of the schools they play for in an attempt to create clearer national standards in the NCAA s name image and likeness era Trump directed the secretary of labor and the National Labor Relations Board to clarify the status of collegiate athletes through guidance or rules that will maximize the educational benefits and opportunities provided by higher teaching institutions through athletics The order does not provide or suggest specifics on the controversial topic of college athlete employment The move comes after months of speculation about whether Trump will establish a college sports commission to tackle specific of the thorny issues facing what is now a multibillion-dollar industry He instead issued an order intended to add specific controls to an out-of-control rudderless system in which competing university donors engage in bidding wars for the best players who can change teams each season Absent guardrails to stop the madness and ensure a reasonable balanced use of guidance across collegiate athletic programs that preserves their educational and developmental benefits numerous college sports will soon cease to exist Trump s order says It is common sense that college sports are not and should not be professional sports and my administration will take action accordingly There has been a dramatic increase in money flowing into and around college athletics and a sense of chaos Key court victories won by athletes angry that they were barred for decades from earning income based on their celebrity and from sharing in the billions of revenue they helped generate have gutted the amateurism model long at the heart of college sports Facing a growing number of state laws undercutting its authority the NCAA in July cleared the way for athletes to cash in with NIL deals with brands and sponsors deals now worth millions That came mere days after a - decision from the Supreme Court that ascertained the NCAA cannot impose caps on education-related benefits schools provide to their athletes because such limits violate antitrust law The NCAA s embrace of NIL deals set the stage for another massive change that took effect July The ability of schools to begin paying millions of dollars to their own athletes up to million per school over the next year The billion House settlement shifts even more power to athletes who have also won the ability to transfer from school to school without waiting to play At Big Ten Conference football media days in Las Vegas Purdue coach Barry Odom was sought about the Trump order We ve gotten to the point where establishment is involved Obviously there s belief it requirements to be involved he stated We ll get it all worked out The meeting s been around for a hundred years and it s going to be around more The NCAA has been lobbying for several years for limited antitrust protection to keep a few kind of control over this new landscape and avoid more crippling lawsuits but a handful of bills have gone nowhere in Congress Trump s order makes no mention of that nor does it refer to any of the current bills in Congress aimed at addressing issues in college sports NCAA President Charlie Baker and the nation s largest conferences both issued statements saying there is a clear need for federal decree The association appreciates the Trump administration s focus on the life-changing opportunities college sports provides millions of young people and we look forward to working with student-athletes a bipartisan coalition in Congress and the Trump administration declared Baker while the conferences explained it was fundamental to pass a law with national standards for athletes NIL rights as soon as doable The universities that comprise the NCAA have insisted for decades that athletes are students who cannot be considered anything like a school employee Still selected coaches have just now suggested collective bargaining as a likely answer to the chaos they see It is a complicated topic Universities would become responsible for paying wages benefits and workers compensation and schools and conferences have insisted they will fight any such move in court While private institutions fall under the National Labor Relations Board population universities must follow labor laws that vary from state to state and it s worth noting that virtually every state in the South has right to work laws that present challenges for unions Trump s order also Calls for adding or at least preserving athletic scholarships and roster spots for non-revenue sports which are those outside football and basketball The House settlement allows for unlimited scholarships but does impose roster limits leading to a complicated set of decisions for each project at each school that include feasible concerns about Title IX equity rules Trump noted opportunities for scholarships and collegiate athletic competition in women s and non-revenue sports must be preserved and where feasible expanded Asks the Justice Department and Federal Commerce Commission to preserve college athletics through litigation and other actions to protect the rights and interests of athletes a stance that could influence ongoing lawsuits filed by athletes over eligibility and other issues Directs White House staff to work with the U S Olympic and Paralympic Committee to protect the collegiate pipeline feeding Club USA College sports programs produce around three-quarters of U S Olympians at a typical Summer Games but a few are on uncertain footing as schools begin sharing revenue with athletes and the lion s share going to football and basketball