During a NFL football game most of the attention is dedicated to the players on the field. But, during the breaks and commercial time, all eyes are set on the teams’ cheerleaders to entertain the crowd. Currently, there are 26 NFL teams with cheerleading squads. According to a report from Forbes Magazine, NFL cheerleaders bring in an annual revenue of around 1 million to the team that is cost-effective and rich in profits.Through calendar sales, summer camps, and merchandise the team is able to take these profits and keep most of it for themselves. Even though cheerleaders make money for each team and for the league, the actual NFL cheerleaders work in a sexist and at times, morally flawed work environment.
To start, these women who aspire to make it onto the squad range between the ages of 18 to 25 years old. For most of these young women, this can be a stepping stone in their career or a dream they always wanted to live out. But with that dream comes consequences. Following a rulebook with a strict code of conduct, pay lower than minimum wage and sexual objectification are just a few of the issues that these women face once they make it onto the team.
Over the past few months, the New York Times and other news sources have been following this trend as there are now four pending lawsuits against teams and the league revolving these conflicts. On May 21, a former Houston Texan cheerleader filed a lawsuit against the team and the cheerleading director for improper compensation, verbal harassment and inadequate protection from abusive fans. In June, a Washington Redskin cheerleader stepped forward claiming sexual exploitation and objectification during a Costa Rica photoshoot in 2013. Closer to home, a former Miami Dolphin cheerleader filed a discrimination lawsuit against the team due to her faith.
Which raises the question, why are women still facing these problems in a workplace environment? These young women do not deserve to be subjected to these kinds of behaviors especially since at face value, these uniforms and the traditions of these teams are already cause for objectification. For example, the legendary Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders uniform which consists of a top fashioned as a bra and western belt attached to shorts which might as well be worn as underwear. But at least their getting paid well, right? Well actually most of these girls would actually be better off working at a Hooters or Twin peaks as these restaurants pay their employees more than NFL teams.
According to an article written on Money.com, pro cheerleaders earn roughly somewhere between $75 to $100 per game or less. Most teams refuse to layout the payment information but, some of the teams stated that this is only a part-time position and they must work another full-time job to even be considered. A former cheerleader explained to Money that, “I really felt like I had two full-time jobs during the season and our season never really ended, we had a little break in February.”
Another cheerleader suing the Houston Texans told the New York Times that they were expected to work no more than 30 hours a week but were expected to answer their phones after-hours. So if it was only a part-time position, then why did they have to work in the off-season and respond or work off the clock? It doesn’t make sense and it is unfair to not financially compensate employees for work done while on off time.
There are many facets to these lawsuits and we still might not have all of the answers until these lawsuits and litigations are finalized. What we can understand now though is that these women work incredibly hard for the team and contribute a lot so they shouldn’t be belittled or exploited while they are at work and they should be properly compensated for their time and energy spent to the league.
