Bill · S. 2469· Senate(119-S-2469)
College Athlete Right to Organize Act
- Introduced
- 7/28/2025
- Last activity
- 7/28/2025 — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- Sponsored by
- Christopher Murphy
- Cosponsors
- - 1 - 0
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
The College Athlete Right to Organize Act aims to establish collective bargaining rights for college athletes. It amends the National Labor Relations Act to define college athletes as employees if they receive direct compensation, such as a grant-in-aid, that requires sports participation. The bill expands the definition of "employer" to include public institutions of higher education. It also allows for the creation of multiemployer bargaining units within athletic conferences. Finally, the Act establishes jurisdiction for the Board over labor disputes and representation matters involving these institutions and their athletes.
Yes· 3 of 6
Does this strengthen the rights of workers to organise?+8
The bill grants college athletes the legal right to organize and engage in collective bargaining with their institutions.
Would students be better off under this?+7
The bill establishes labor rights and provides a mechanism for students who are athletes to negotiate their terms of employment.
Would people in their twenties and thirties be better off under this?+6
The bill provides economic and labor rights specifically to college athletes, who are typically in the young adult demographic.
The opposite
No question was scored the opposite.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
-
Establishment of Collective Bargaining Rights: This provision allows college athletes to have representation of their own choosing to negotiate collective-bargaining agreements regarding their labor, compensation, and working conditions (Section 2).
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Creation of Multiemployer Bargaining Units: This allows for the recognition of multiple institutions within an intercollegiate athletic conference as a single bargaining unit, provided employee representatives consent (Section 3(b)).
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Protection of Income and Financial Assistance: The Act ensures that the changes made do not affect the treatment of qualified scholarships or change how direct compensation is treated when determining eligibility for Federal financial assistance (Section 4).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
- No specific negative impacts are explicitly stated in the text provided.
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Good For Students+7Good For Young Adults+6Good For Low Income Households+3
- Economy And Finance
- Improves Union Protections+8
- Social Issues And Justice
- Improves Poverty Reduction+2
- Education And Technology
- Improves College Affordability+1
- 7/28/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- 2 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
Bernie SandersIndependent · Vermont
Elizabeth WarrenDemocrat · Massachusetts