The United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) secured one of the most significant wins in their history after reaching a $24 million settlement with US Soccer Federation to end a dispute over equal pay, according to a joint announcement made on Tuesday (22 February).
COMPLAINT The landmark agreement comes nearly seven years after five USWNT players filed a complaint over unequal pay and working conditions at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and three years after 28 members of the team filed a lawsuit, alleging years of ongoing institutionalized gender discrimination in their compensation and working conditions.
AGREEMENT According to the agreement, the women’s and men’s national teams will receive an equal rate of pay in all friendlies and tournaments, including the World Cup.
“We are pleased to announce that, contingent on the negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement, we will have resolved our longstanding dispute over equal pay and proudly stand together in a shared commitment to advancing equality in soccer,” Tuesday’s joint statement said.
$24 MILLION US Soccer will pay $22 million to the players in the case as part of the agreement and an “additional $2 million into an account to benefit USWNT players in their post-career goals and charitable efforts related to women’s and girls’ soccer.” The settlement is subject to the ratification of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the USWNT and US Soccer.
LEGACY “Getting to this day has not been easy,” the statement added. “The U.S. Women’s National Team players have achieved unprecedented success while working to achieve equal pay for themselves and future athletes.
“Today, we recognize the legacy of the past USWNT leaders who helped to make this day possible, as well as all of the women and girls who will follow. Together, we dedicate this moment to them.
“We look forward to continuing to work together to grow women’s soccer and advance opportunities for young girls and women in the United States and across the globe.”
HUGE WIN Megan Rapinoe, who alongside Alex Morgan, Becky Sauerbrunn and now retired Hope Solo and Carli Lloyd, filed the EEOC complaint in March 2016, said: “For us, this is just a huge win in ensuring that we not only right the wrongs of the past, but set the next generation up for something we only dreamed of,” she told NBC’s “TODAY” show on Tuesday.
“We are really in the midst of an incredible turning point in women’s sport. If you’re not paying attention to this right now and what’s happening in women’s sport, you’re sleeping on the whole thing.”
The USWNT inspired fans to chant “Equal Pay!” when they won the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, few months after 28 members of the team filed the gender discrimination lawsuit in March of the same year.
WORLD CUP PRIZE MONEY FIFA awarded $30 million for the 24 teams at the 2019 women’s World Cup, including $4 million to the winners. By comparison, the world football governing body awarded $400 million in prize money for the 32 teams at the 2018 men’s World Cup, and $38 million to the champion, France.
Morgan is hoping that equality is achieved on all fronts. “U.S. Soccer has agreed to equalize the prize money moving forward, obviously we call on FIFA to truly equalize that for men’s and women’s tournaments,” she said. “That’s really what we set out to do. Equalize on all fronts. It’s a proud moment for all of us,” she told NBC’s “TODAY” show.
The settlement also means success for US Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone, a former USWNT midfielder who was part of the World Cup winning team in 1999 and became head of the federation in March 2020.
GREAT TRANSITION MOMENT “I think this is a huge win for everyone involved, but right now we’re focused on moving the game forward so this is actually a great transition moment,” she said on ABC’s Good Morning America. “We still have a lot of work to do with repairing the relationship with our players but we’re on the road to that but looking forward.
“They’re not only the best players in the world, they are great ambassadors for our sport and so now that we can work arm in arm together to grow the game both here at home and abroad and to raise the level of the women’s game across the globe, I think is really special and I’m really looking forward to turning the page on this and working together with our women’s team.”
Cone replaced Carlos Cordeiro, who resigned amid the legal back and forth after the federation made a legal filing that included sexist language claiming that female players had less ability and responsibility than men.
In December 2020, the USWNT reached an agreement with US Soccer Federation over equal work conditions. The latest settlement comes two weeks before both sides were scheduled to argue before an appeals court on 7 March as the USWNT hoped to reinstate the unequal pay claim which was rejected in May 2020 by federal judge Gary Klausner, who ruled that the women’s side played more matches and made more money than their male counterparts.
Credit: AIPS
Related
You must be logged in to post a comment.