NU Players Move to Join Union

First reported by ESPN earlier today, a group of Northwestern players, led by Kain Colter, have formally requested to join a labor union and be recognized as employees of the school. The players sought representation backed by the United Steelworkers Union.

Accroding to ESPN, the NCAA and NU have already responded. Per ESPN, the NCAA's response read, in part: "Student-athletes are not employees within any definition of the National Labor Relations Act," and that there is no existing employment relationships between the "NCAA, its affiliated institutions or student-athletes. . . This union-backed attempt to turn student-athletes into employees undermines the purpose of college: an education. Student-athletes are not employees, and their participation in college sports is voluntary. We stand for all student-athletes, not just those the unions want to professionalize."

Also per ESPN, NU athletic VP Jim Phillips gave the following statement: "Northwestern believes that our student-athletes are not employees and collective bargaining is therefore not the appropriate method to address these concerns. However, we agree that the health and academic issues being raised by our student-athletes and others are important ones that deserve further consideration."

Obviously, this situation is going to continue to unfold. More to come.