The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in February held
oral arguments in a case that could decide whether student-athletes
can be considered university employees under the Fair Labor
Standards Act.
Its interpretation of the law might reverberate beyond the
confines of college sports and could implicate whether unpaid
student interns must also be treated as employees.
In late 2019, Ralph Johnson, a former Villanova University
football player, initiated a class action in the U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in Johnson v.
National Collegiate Athletic Association, asserting that
student-athletes in Pennsylvania, New York and Connecticut qualify
as university employees under the FLSA, and thus must be
compensated for their time spent related to their athletic
activities.