Raiders Cheerleaders Sue Team Over Unfair Wages

In a type of story that does not surface often, a squad of cheerleaders in the NFL is suing the team that they cheer for. The cheerleaders for the Oakland Raiders have recently brought up a lawsuit wi...
Raiders Cheerleaders Sue Team Over Unfair Wages
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  • In a type of story that does not surface often, a squad of cheerleaders in the NFL is suing the team that they cheer for.

    The cheerleaders for the Oakland Raiders have recently brought up a lawsuit with the team after feeling that they are being paid unfairly.

    The Oakland Raiders are being sued by current and former cheerleaders who claim that their wages were taken away, among other unfair employment practices.

    The Raiders cheerleaders have the nickname of Raidettes, and while being put on display for everyone to see, they feel that they deserve to be treated fairly.

    The lawsuit was filed on Wednseday at the Alameda County Superior Court, asserting that the organization withholds all pay from the Raiderettes until the end of the season, does not pay for all hours worked and forces the cheerleaders to pay many of their own business expenses.

    One member of the Raidettes, who is identified only as Lacy T. due to their security policy, was able to speak up for her and fellow cheerleaders and said “We also have to pay the costs for traveling to all kinds of events, including photo shoots … I love the Raiders and I love being a Raiderette, but someone has to stand up for all of the women of the NFL who work so hard for the fans and the teams.”

    Sharon Vinick, the attorney working on the case, also reported that she had never seen an employment contract with so many illegal provisions.

    The Raiders have had a bad enough time on the field in recent years without having to have this kind of thing happen, and the team has had two consecutive seasons of 4-12 records.

    As for what the cheerleaders hope to accomplish through the lawsuit, it seeks to repay “tens of thousands of dollars” to former cheerleaders and “thousands of dollars” to those who worked in 2013.

    If these recent findings are true, it is quite shocking, and something certainly needs to done to protect the wages of cheerleaders in the league. It also shows that they earn much less than the NFL mascots per year, which seems silly when thinking about all of the things that the cheerleaders have to do, in addition to actually being seen and displayed publicly during each game.

    The filing found that the Raiders cheerleaders are only paid $1,250 per season, which amounts to less than $5 per hour for the time they spend rehearsing, performing and appearing at events for which they are not compensated.

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