The women of the U.S. soccer team are putting their feet down. The women who brought home multiple championships are tired of not being paid as much the men’s team. They are suing the U.S. Soccer Federation for $66 million in damages as part of their gender discrimination lawsuit.
The women’s national team sued the federation in March 2019 and used their successful track record to prove that they need a pay raise. Documents recently made public in the suit include the bargaining agreements of the U.S. men’s and women’s teams, which show not only a pay disparity between the two teams, but also different pay structures.
The federation is defending itself, saying that the women’s team is paid differently due to contracts they negotiated for that are completely separate form the men’s team. The federation said that despite being offered similar pay-to-play contracts as the men’s team, the women’s team instead opted for benefits the men’s team does not receive, including guaranteed annual salaries, medical and dental insurance, paid child care assistance, paid pregnancy and paternal leave, severance benefits, salary continuation during periods of injury, and access to a retirement plan and bonuses.
Molly Levinson, spokeswoman for the women’s team, said that while the women were offered a similar pay-to-play to the men’s team, the pay across the board was less than what was offered to the men’s team.
Fans of the women’s team seem to be on their side. They were chanting “Equal Pay” after the U.S. women’s team won a major contest in France.
Only time will tell if the women can bargain their way into making as much as their male counterparts. The trial is scheduled to begin on May 5.
