Los Angeles just hosted Super Bowl LVI. More than 100-million people watched as the Los Angeles Rams took on the Cincinnati Bengals. A substantial percentage of these players are millionaires. The commercials cost $7 million. A single ticket would have cost you between $5,000 and $9,000. The event is a celebration of disposable extravagance.
But some employees did not share the profits—NFL cheerleaders. These smiling representatives are overworked and underpaid, and constantly in danger of harassment and discrimination.
If you are receiving discrimination and harassment at work, you should contact the Los Angeles workplace harassment attorneys at the Law Offices of Kropach & Kropach.
Barely making minimum wage, NFL Cheerleaders work about 40 hours a week—rehearsing choreography and routines, working out to stay fit, representing the team at mandatory corporate events like private parties, charity benefits, fundraisers, and photoshoots. They work the field and stadiums in both pre-and-post games.
This does not factor in the beauty standards they are under pressure to maintain—the intense diets, the weekly hair and nail appointments. In a lot of cases, they pay for their cheer equipment. It seems like they are paying out as much as they are pulling in.
NFL representatives have said that the league plays no part in how the various teams select cheerleaders, assign their duties, schedule their hours, or decide their wages. And the NFL has been outspoken about not wanting to change that structure.
These cheerleaders must really love what they do.
Of the 32 NFL teams, 26 still have cheerleaders. At least 10 of the 26 teams have been sued by cheerleaders, alleging:
One lawsuit claims the team mascot made $60,000 a year, considerably more than the cheerleaders made. In 2014, the Oakland Raiders settled a landmark case and shelled out $1.25 million in cheerleader backpay. The team also increased the Raiderette cheerleaders’ pay to $9 an hour, double what they made before the lawsuit.
The disrespect of being underpaid is often accompanied by sexual harassment allegations. In 2020, an extensive Washington Post investigation uncovered the Washington Football Team’s staff and owner Dan Snyder “created a climate of fear that allowed abusive behavior to continue unchecked.”
More investigations have been conducted, validating former and current cheerleaders’ experience of:
The face of the franchise has begun to lift their megaphones so we can hear their fight songs.
Cheerleaders may be an extreme example, but discrimination and harassment are common workplace occurrences. These inappropriate conditions can lead to injuries, risking both your physical and mental wellbeing.
Aside from the endless list of physical injuries that can happen at work. Improper workplace behavior often results in:
If you feel like your workplace is an unsafe environment or have experienced discrimination or harassment, the Los Angeles workplace harassment attorneys at the Law Offices of Kropach & Kropach will fight to get the benefits you deserve.
Contact us for a free consultation or call us at 818-609-7005.
