Umpire Uniforms

[MD Longhorn]

Here's your change...

[Publius]

The high school state association where I live "requires" blue shirts only, and all-black shoes. I ignore them both, and work 30 dates in an eight-week season.

They can require whatever they want in a uniform, but compliance is voluntary. You're an independent contractor. They can exclude you from the state tournament, but they can't keep you from working.

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

Originally Posted by Publius

The high school state association where I live "requires" blue shirts only, and all-black shoes. I ignore them both, and work 30 dates in an eight-week season.

They can require whatever they want in a uniform, but compliance is voluntary. You're an independent contractor. They can exclude you from the state tournament, but they can't keep you from working.

Publius:

I don't know where you live, BUT, you may be an independent contractor, but if your StateHSAA has a required uniform I would advise you to wear it. The OhioHSAA can fine an official up to $100 for not wearing the correct uniform, i.e., wearing a powder blue or red shirt to umpire a baseball or fastpitch softball game, or wearing the gray with black pinstripe shirts for a basketball game (and I really do prefer the gray shirts over the zebra shirts myself). Meaning, that they can keep you from officiating.

MTD, Sr.

[zm1283]

Originally Posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.

Publius:

I don't know where you live, BUT, you may be an independent contractor, but if your StateHSAA has a required uniform I would advise you to wear it. The OhioHSAA can fine an official up to $100 for not wearing the correct uniform, i.e., wearing a powder blue or red shirt to umpire a baseball or fastpitch softball game, or wearing the gray with black pinstripe shirts for a basketball game (and I really do prefer the gray shirts over the zebra shirts myself). Meaning, that they can keep you from officiating.

MTD, Sr.

The only way that uniform standards can really be enforced at the high school level is by local associations. The state bodies don't have the time or manpower to ensure that every official is dressed properly. That may be different in some places, but I know that a lot of baseball umpires in this area ignore the navy-only shirt/jacket/hat rule that the state governing body has. The only time everyone follows it is in the district and state tournaments.

[yawetag]

Originally Posted by zm1283

The state bodies don't have the time or manpower to ensure that every official is dressed properly.

The coaches, however, could report such instances to the state.

[mbyron]

Originally Posted by zm1283

The only way that uniform standards can really be enforced at the high school level is by local associations. The state bodies don't have the time or manpower to ensure that every official is dressed properly. That may be different in some places, but I know that a lot of baseball umpires in this area ignore the navy-only shirt/jacket/hat rule that the state governing body has. The only time everyone follows it is in the district and state tournaments.

Enforcement is a separate issue. Publius's point concerns a legal principle: whether state associations can mandate uniforms for independent contractors.

I will patiently explain again: the mandate is not for independent contractors as such. The mandate is for licensed officials. It is then up to member schools whether they hire independent contractors who have a state license.

Around here, schools want licensed officials, so the mandated uniform is de facto required if you want to umpire high school baseball.

[zm1283]

Originally Posted by yawetag

The coaches, however, could report such instances to the state.

In this area, no coaches that I know of care what uniform we're wearing. I guess if one really had a vendetta against a certain official, they could report it, but I haven't seen that happen.

Originally Posted by mbyron

Enforcement is a separate issue. Publius's point concerns a legal principle: whether state associations can mandate uniforms for independent contractors.

I will patiently explain again: the mandate is not for independent contractors as such. The mandate is for licensed officials. It is then up to member schools whether they hire independent contractors who have a state license.

Around here, schools want licensed officials, so the mandated uniform is de facto required if you want to umpire high school baseball.

I get what you're saying. I realize enforcement is different than the principle. Around here, the associations come right out and say that as long as you match, it doesn't matter

[MikeStrybel]

My Poly-wools went through a rough Spring and still look brand new. I machine wash and hang them to dry. Dry cleaning is over kill.

Uniform, by its very definition, means everyone looks the same. I am not a fan of having to buy six different color shirts so that I can match my partner. Still, I am with you on having only one vendor to buy from. Competition is good in this economy.

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

Originally Posted by mbyron

Enforcement is a separate issue. Publius's point concerns a legal principle: whether state associations can mandate uniforms for independent contractors.

I will patiently explain again: the mandate is not for independent contractors as such. The mandate is for licensed officials. It is then up to member schools whether they hire independent contractors who have a state license.

Around here, schools want licensed officials, so the mandated uniform is de facto required if you want to umpire high school baseball.

Mike:

Well said.

MTD, Sr.

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

Originally Posted by zm1283

The only way that uniform standards can really be enforced at the high school level is by local associations. The state bodies don't have the time or manpower to ensure that every official is dressed properly. That may be different in some places, but I know that a lot of baseball umpires in this area ignore the navy-only shirt/jacket/hat rule that the state governing body has. The only time everyone follows it is in the district and state tournaments.

ZM:

I don't know where you live; and you are correct regarding a StateHSAA's lack of manpower to enforce its officials' uniform requirements, BUT you would be suprised what your StateHSAA knows.

Somebody from your local umpire's association could see you umpire in a non-sanctioned uniform and report you to your StateHSAA, or you umpire a game that is broadcast on your cable company's local access channel (BuckeyeCable my local cable company has it own sports channel (BCSN) for local H.S. and college sports) and video of the game is sent to your StateHSAA offices. I can assure you that it happens.

The following is a true story that happened to two H.S. soccer officials here in Ohio. The year that USSF/FIFA officials changed from black shirts with white cuffs to yellow shirts with black cuffs, the OhioHSAA still required its soccer officials to wear black shirts with white cuffs. During the very first week of the H.S. soccer season two officials officiated a varsity game at a H.S. located only a couple of miles from the OhioHSAA's offices; the officals decided that they were going to wear their USSF yellow shirts to officiate the game. Unbeknownst to them, an administrator from the OhioHSAA happened to be in the stands. Each official was fined $100, and their game fee was only $40.

MTD, Sr.

[treydawgmt]

In the "north of I-80" part of Illinois, to work essentially any game, you contract with one of a handful of associations. These associations have uniform requirements, which also conform to the IHSA uniform standards. You wear the uniform the association tells you to for the specific game. If you don't, and your assignor finds out, you probably won't be working for that organization at all any more. And then you don't work at all pretty quick. Makes it easy - follow the uniform!

[Publius]

Originally Posted by Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.

Publius:

I don't know where you live, BUT, you may be an independent contractor, but if your StateHSAA has a required uniform I would advise you to wear it. The OhioHSAA can fine an official up to $100 for not wearing the correct uniform, i.e., wearing a powder blue or red shirt to umpire a baseball or fastpitch softball game, or wearing the gray with black pinstripe shirts for a basketball game (and I really do prefer the gray shirts over the zebra shirts myself). Meaning, that they can keep you from officiating.

MTD, Sr.

Where I live,there are no fines. If there were, I would not pay them. If they told me I could not work, we'd have a legal discussion about the extent that adhesion contracts are binding in this context. "If you don't like it, don't work their games" is a cowardly cop-out. They can't just do whatever they want unless you let them. Your rights are worthless if you don't undergo the fatigue of exercising them.

My positions are always about associations--state or local--trying to screw officials by making them take on the detriments of both employees and independent contractors, while keeping the benefits of both for themselves. Officials do themselves no favors by allowing them to do so. I couldn't care less what color my shirt is, but I care greatly about who decides. Local associations in particular ought to be charged with theft for charging dues to officials, and then doing little to nothing to represent their interests.

Associations can--and do--require lots of things that I adhere to without question. Whether they can require a specific uniform--particularly a specific manufacturer--as a condition of granting a "license" (We are not licensed here; merely registered. Licenses are granted by government agencies here. In some states, the state association is a government body; here, it is a not-for-profit agency) as a subterfuge to avoid compliance with maintaining the distinction between employee and independent contractor differs from state to state and may or may not be enforceable.

Since there is no one single item that defines employee or independent contractor, you have to watch what side of the line everything they do falls on. My state association is close to requiring enough to classify them as an employer, and I'm sure they know it. That, and likely not lack of knowledge, keeps them from enforcing some of their "requirements." What I do guarantees that I will never work a state tournament, but does more to benefit
officials than nearly any local association does. They act, by and large, as if they are just subdivisions of the state.

Officials in some areas have traded away some of their rights in return for more money or other benefits, and that's fine. Here, they just let themselves be abused, buying into the practices indicating that officiating is more important than officials.

If associations want to require so much that they fall on the employer side of the line, that's fine, too; they can pay FICA and workman's comp. They want to have their cake, and eat it, too. That, I will not quietly abide. I know most officials love doing games so much that they'll tolerate unneeded burdens to do it. I'm just letting them know they don't always have to.