Posted on 04/24/2014 11:32:56 AM PDT by C19fan
In 2014, the cheerleaders revolted. This January, rookie NFL cheerleader Lacy T. kicked things off when she filed a class action lawsuit against the Oakland Raiders, alleging that the team fails to pay its Raiderettes minimum wage, withholds their pay until the end of the season, imposes illegal fines for minor infractions (like gaining 5 pounds), and forces cheerleaders to pay their own business expenses (everything from false eyelashes to monthly salon visits). Within a month, Cincinnati Bengals cheerleader Alexa Brenneman had filed a similar suit against her team, claiming that the Ben-Gals are paid just $2.85 an hour for their work on the sidelines. And Tuesday, five former Buffalo Bills cheerleaders filed suit against their own team, alleging that the Buffalo Jills were required to perform unpaid work for the team for about 20 hours a week. Unpaid activities included: submitting to a weekly “jiggle test” (where cheer coaches “scrutinized the women's stomach, arms, legs, hips, and butt while she does jumping jacks”); parading around casinos in bikinis “for the gratification of the predominantly male crowd”; and offering themselves up as prizes at a golf tournament, where they were required to sit on men’s laps on the golf carts, submerge themselves in a dunk tank, and perform backflips for tips (which they did not receive). The Buffalo Jills cheerleaders take home just $105 to $1,800 for an entire season on the job.
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...
These teams are rolling in dough. They can afford to treat the girls better.
Wait until the homo factor sues to get guys in the squads.
Hell, I always thought they volunteered.
They are basically paying for the privilege to be ogled by millions.
I’m not a fan of labor unions, but in this case...
Of course if they get the same organization as Flight Attendants it will defeat the purpose.
IIRC, some guy sued Hooters claiming not hiring guy servers was discriminatory and lost. I think the all female squads are OK for the time being. Unless a Sotomayor replaces one of the conservative Justices.
I can sorta sympathize with the girls.
OTOH, was all this hidden from them? Were they forced to join the squads?
Seems to me there are plenty of women who would do this “job”, or they wouldn’t need tryouts. Maybe if they don’t think the pay is worth the work, they should get another job and let someone else who wants the job have it.
Its not really a job. More like a tryout to be able to say you are a cheerleader.
It is pretty sad that these women make so little compared to the bozo’s on the field. The NFL is all about being PC and those Pink games but when it comes down to it they could give a rats ass how they treat people.
I'm no fem-nazi, not by an means. But here I side with the cheerleaders. Cheerleading, when done properly is a serious and challenging sport. It is not surprising that women who excel at it want to cheer for their NFL team, just as the football players who excel want to play in the NFL.
I was shocked when the first publicity about their pay and conditions came out. Those cheerleaders are accomplished professionals. There should not be "jiggle tests". Any weight considerations should involve safety and performance. Salary should be enough so they don't have to hold other jobs, and they should also spend time beyond the games and training being representatives of the team at charity and community events.
They're professionals; they should be paid and treated as such.
they agreed to the terms when they signed up. They can always become waitresses
How about they just pay the girls a fair wage. I don’t understand why they don’t. I don’t get it.
They provide entertainment and marketing and in return they get... $1800 per season? Really?
I guess NFL owners are really the greedy exploiters that anti-capitalist accuse rich people of being.
Give the girls wages. That’s not complicated.
No one is holding a gun to their heads, making them show up on the sidelines. The NHL doesn’t need cheerleaders, and neither does major league baseball. Football shouldn’t have to rely on having boobies and bottoms to ogle in order to sell tickets.
Rules, gentlemen; please follow the rules.
And this is clearly a violation of the rules...
I think the reason the pay is so low is that there are hundreds of girls trying out-—because this is a quick way to a sugar daddy. NFL cheerleaders are right in front of wealthy men in box seats and on the field.
“They provide entertainment and marketing and in return they get... $1800 per season? Really?”
8 games without playoffs. That’s $225 a game. Games last three hours, that’s $75 an hour. And of those three hours, they are basically working during breaks.
Not bad weekend work.
Off subject but that tagline you have is awesome didn’t know you were a Hendrix fan.
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