SPMT 360 - Quiz 2 (Labor in Sport)

Theoretical Framework - Perceptions of Labor:

• Capitalist/Leisure Class:

• Physical & Service Laborers:

• Lawnmowing Scenario:

• Owns capital, contracts labor and captures surplus value while performing minimal physical work.

• Perform actual operational work (time & physical effort) but receive restricted wages.

• A student secures a $50 contract, subcontracts manual labor to a peer for $30, retaining $20 profit without doing manual work.

Multi-Billion-Dollar Industry:

Major athletic conferences generate billions through television media rights and sponsorships.

501(c)(3) Tax Exemption:

Universities and the NCAA register as non-profit educational entities, exempting revenues from federal income tax

Reinvestment Accounting:

Athletic departments report 'zero net profit' by allocating surplus revenue into multi-million-dollar executive and coaching salaries and luxury facility arms races.

Legal Origin of the ‘Student-Athlete’ Term & Defense Strategy:

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• 1950s Legal Defense

• Ray Dennison Case

• Liability & Risk Transfer

• Amateurism Doctrine

1950s Legal Defense:

Coined by NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers specifically to shield universities from workers' compensation liability.

Ray Dennison Case:

When Fort Lewis A&M player Ray Dennison died from a football injury, his widow sought workers' comp death benefits. The court ruled he was a 'student', not an employee.

Liability & Risk Transfer:

Denying employee status legally transfers medical, physical, and financial injury risks from the university onto athletes and their families.

Amateurism Doctrine:

Used for decades as a legal foundation to restrict direct athlete compensation while commercial revenues expanded.

National Labor Relations Act (NLRA):

Grants private-sector workers the right to organize, form unions, and engage in collective bargaining.

Northwestern Football Case (2014):

Kain Colter & CAPA petitioned the NLRB for employee status, seeking independent medical care, concussion protocols, and guaranteed academic scholarships.

NLRB Regional Decision:

Regional Director ruled that players were employees under common-law agency rules, though full NLRB later declined jurisdiction.

4 Operational Threats Avoided by Rejecting Unions:

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4. 
   

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1. Mandatory Collective Bargaining:

• Must negotiate wages, schedules, and working conditions legally.

2. Loss of Unilateral Control:

• Management loses power to alter rules without union agreement.

3. Direct Wage & Benefit Costs:

• Mandatory health coverage, minimum wages, and overtime eligibility.

4. Strike & Work Stoppage Risks

• Unionized labor gains legal leverage to strike during major events.

Unpaid Internships & the FLSA Primary Beneficiary Test:

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3. 
   

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1. Educational Tie:

• Internship must complement, not displace, formal education.

2. No Employee Displacement:

• Interns cannot displace regular paid staff.

3. Skill Acquisition:

• Focus must be on professional development rather than routine administrative work.

4. No Wage Expectancy:

• Clear mutual understanding of unpaid status.

Volunteer Regulations:

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1. For-Profit Volunteer Ban:

• Private for-profit entities cannot legally utilize 'volunteers' for regular work.

2. Non-Profit Volunteer Rules:

• Permitted only for civic/charitable duties without coercion.

Socio-Economic Equity Barrier:

Unpaid internships favor affluent students who can afford uncompensated work, excluding low-income peers.

40-Hour Workweek Standard:

FLSA mandates that non-exempt employees receive 1.5× their regular hourly pay rate for all hours worked over 40 hours in a workweek.

The Overtime Connection:

Exemption status determines overtime entitlement. Exempt workers receive zero overtime pay regardless of working 60–80-hour weeks during sports seasons.

Hourly vs. Salary Myth:

Earning a salary does NOT automatically make a worker exempt. Workers must pass all 3 Department of Labor tests.

The 3 Tests for FLSA Exemption Status:

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1. Salary Level Test

2. Salary Basis Test

3. Job Duties Test

Salary Level Test:

• Federal Threshold:

• Automatic Non-Exempt:

• Workers must earn above the minimum federal salary threshold ($35,568/yr or $684/wk).

• Earning below this threshold automatically makes a worker non-exempt, entitling them to overtime pay.

Salary Basis Test:

• Predetermined Pay:

• No Hourly Deductions:

• A worker must receive a fixed salary that cannot be reduced based on the quality or quantity of work

• Deductions for partial-day absences destroy the salary basis, triggering overtime eligibility.

Job Duties Test:

• Actual Responsibilities:

• Executive, Admin, or Professional:

• Exemption is determined by actual daily duties, not job titles.

• Primary duty must fit white-collar legal categories defined by the DOL.

The 3 White-Collar Exemptions in Sport Organizations:

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2. 
   

3. 
   

1. Executive Exemption

2. Administrative Exemption

3. Professional Exemption

Executive Exemption:

• Primary Duty:

• Direct Supervision:

• Authority:

• Examples:

• Management of an enterprise, department, or subdivision.

• Regularly directs the work of 2+ full-time employees.

• Holds authority to hire, fire, or advance employees.

• Athletic Directors, General Managers, Head Coaches

Administrative Exemption:

• Primary Duty:

• Discretion & Judgement:

• Examples:

• Office or non-manual work directly related to management or business operations.

• Customarily exercises discretion on significant matters.

• Sports Compliance Directors, Business Operations Managers.

Professional Exemption:

• Learned Professional:

• Creative Professional:

• Examples:

• Work requiring advanced knowledge in a specialized field of science or learning.

• Work requiring invention, imagination, or artistic talent.

• Certified Athletic Trainers, Sports Information Directors.

Emotional Labor:

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The management of feeling to create a publicly observable facial and bodily display.

• Surface Acting

• Deep Acting

• Genuine Expression

Surface Acting:

When one changes how they present themselves in order to “fit in” to a given social setting within the organization.

Deep Acting:

When individuals alter their perceptions in order to try and experience the appropriate or desired emotions, which then allows for a more natural expression.

Genuine Expression:

Displaying the situation-specific appropriate emotions with little to no effort.