Berger v. Nat’l Collegiate Athletic Ass’n

Dist. Ct. did not err in dismissing for failure to state valid cause of action plaintiffs' (former track and field athletes enrolled at University of Pennsylvania) claim alleging that their participation as student athletes on track and field team established their employee status at school so as to entitle them to minimum wages under Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA). Plaintiffs lacked standing to sue either NCAA or other universities, since their connection to said entities was too tenuous to be considered employment. Moreover, although plaintiffs had standing to sue University of Pennsylvania, Dist. Ct. could properly reject plaintiffs’ claim that they were akin to “trainees” or “private-sector interns” so as to entitle them to minimum wages, since economic reality of relationship between student athletes and their schools was one of amateurism. Ct. further noted that Field Operations Handbook for Dept. of Labor indicated that student athletes are not employees under FSLA because said students are only participating in extracurricular activities conducted primarily for their own benefit.