3rd Circuit set to weigh in: Are student athletes also employees?

The U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Pennsylvania employers) recently announced it will consider the most important question in collegiate sports history: whether students who participate in college athletics are employees. The case comes on the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court’s August 25, 2021, decision in NCAA v. Alston, which struck down the organization’s ability to limit student athlete compensation. Aside from a dramatic shift in the power dynamic long held by the NCAA and its partner schools, a departure from the status quo recognizing student athletes as employees raises significant concerns under both federal and state law including their entitlement to the minimum wage and overtime.

Background

In the case headed to the 3rd Circuit, a group of Division I student athletes from New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut filed suit in the U.S. District for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania claiming the NCAA and certain member institutions violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and various state wage and hour laws by failing to pay them minimum wage and overtime. Shortly after the complaint was filed, the NCAA predictably asked the court to dismiss it, arguing: