JorgeJonas
Helluva Engineer
- Messages
- 1,147
No, it doesn't matter whether they're employees or not. What matters is whether there's a restraint of trade. If AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint all decided to charge the exact same fees for the exact same service, it's a restraint of trade. Then a court would consider whether that promotes competition more than it stifles it. Similarly, employment status is entirely irrelevant to the NCAA's behavior. Irrespective of industry, if competing entities agree to something, there is a restraint of trade.The crux of your argument Jorge is the stipulation players are employees. A court may rule that is the case eventually. Will be a ridiculous ruling if it occurs but those happen more and more frequently nowadays.
Employment status would be important in a discussion about whether or not a union could be certified, but that's not happening here (the Northwestern case has nothing to do with antitrust law; instead if that union is certified, they would negotiate with Northwestern University, not the NCAA).