College athletes should be paid. As students of the college, they are paying a significant amount of money just to attend the school. When they compete for the school and earn winnings or other benefits, they add on to the amount of money the school earns off of them. Since they are responsible for more economic income for the school, they should be entitled to a portion of it to make up for their sacrifices.

Additionally, the law clearly states that no individual may work for any amount of time without being paid, unless they are explicitly working for a charitable organization or as service. Since college athletes are doing neither of those things, they deserve to be paid just as much as those who are working internships and full time jobs. In fact, many work more hours than those with jobs and sacrifice more than others do for their careers.

If athletes are contributing more to the school’s economy than other students and are representing a school that profits off of their success, then all laws point to the fact that they should be paid. In fact, this process has already been started through scholarships, meaning the argument has been raised by the universities themselves that this should be the case.