The topic of women’s rights has been in the news a lot lately, especially with the recent Women’s March on Washington that took place late last month. Now it’s in the news again, but this time it’s in relation to unfair wages. A proposed class action lawsuit has been filed against the NFL by a group of former cheerleaders. Why? Well, according to the lawsuit, the NFL and all 26 of its member teams that “employ cheerleaders actively conspired to underpay them and keep them from negotiating better salaries.”
The topic of women’s rights has been in the news a lot lately, especially with the recent Women’s March on Washington that took place late last month. Now it’s in the news again, but this time it’s in relation to unfair wages. A proposed class action lawsuit has been filed against the NFL by a group of former cheerleaders. Why? Well, according to the lawsuit, the NFL and all 26 of its member teams that “employ cheerleaders actively conspired to underpay them and keep them from negotiating better salaries.”
The lawsuit was filed last Tuesday “in U.S. District Court in San Francisco,” and involves four cheerleaders from the San Francisco 49ers and the Oakland Raiders. According to the plaintiffs, the cheerleading life isn’t as glamorous as TV makes it seem. They’re often paid a meager $100 per home game, while things like mandatory public appearances and practices are unpaid. Oftentimes cheerleaders even have to pay a fee just to audition. On top of that, they’re subjected to hefty fines for missing practices and violating other cheerleading rules. Those fines are deducted from their final pay, which, by the way, often isn’t paid out until the end of the season.
In addition to alleging unfair pay, the lawsuit also claims the league and individual teams would “prohibit female athletes from discussing their wages with each other in a further effort to suppress wages.” According to the lead plaintiff’s attorney, Drexel Bradshaw, “the NFL and its member teams have intentionally conspired together to thwart competition so that they could pay these women illegally.”
So how much are the cheerleaders looking to get out of the lawsuit? Well, they would like between $100 and $300 million in damages and back pay. That seems totally reasonable when you consider the fact that NFL players collectively raked in $6.4 billion last year. Even team mascots make out well, earning between $25,000 and $60,000 per year. Oftentimes, mascots even receive benefits! How is it fair that a mascot is given a living wage, but cheerleaders aren’t. It makes no sense and just demonstrates the lack of respect the league has for its cheerleaders. As one of the plaintiffs said as to why she’s fighting for fair pay for cheerleaders, “I just want them to know their worth, to not be taken for granted.”
Another allegation in the lawsuit claims there is an agreement between “NFL teams’ owners and senior executives” to keep cheerleader wages low. In fact, the lawsuit states:
“This class action challenges a conspiracy among defendants to fix and suppress the compensation of their employees, female athletes colloquially known as ‘cheerleaders.’ Without knowledge or consent of employees, defendant NFL Member Teams’ owners and senior executives entered into an agreement or series of agreements to eliminate competition among them for skilled labor employed as ‘cheerleaders.'”
When asked about the allegations, a spokesman for the NFL declined to comment, claiming the league was unaware of the lawsuit.
Sources:
Former Cheerleaders Sue the NFL, Alleging Conspiracy Over Unfair Wages
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