Oakland Raiders Agree To $1.25 Million Settlement With Former Cheerleaders
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- The Oakland Raiders have agreed to pay a $1.25 million settlement to a group of 100 former cheerleaders who claimed they were underpaid.
The settlement announced by the cheerleaders attorneys will be paid to women who were on the Raiderettes from 2010 to 2014.
The class action lawsuit, the first lawsuit filed on behalf of cheerleaders in the NFL, claimed the Raiders failed to pay their cheerleading squad minimum wage for the hours they worked, failed to pay overtime and failed to reimburse thousands of dollars of incurred expenses.
"Our clients have now been paid the equivalent of minimum wage for all of the hours they worked and have been reimbursed for their out-of-pocket expenses," said Sharon Vinick of Levy Vinick Burrell Hyams. "It is important to note that paying these women minimum wage doesn't represent the value that these hard-working women bring to the Game Day Experience."
The team did not comment on the settlement.
Under the terms of the agreement, each former Raiderette will receive an average of $7,500 each. However, if the woman was on the Raiderettes for multiple seasons, she could receive over $20,000.
The class action suit was filed in January 2014 on behalf of Lacy T. and Sarah G., two former Raiderettes whose identities are being protected.
"I never dreamed that my decision to find a lawyer and file a lawsuit would lead to the kind of sweeping changes we have seen for the women of the NFL," said Lacy T. "It's pretty breathtaking. But as a mom, it makes me proud to know I've stood up for myself, other women, and my daughters."
The Raiders appealed the original court decision in favor of the women to the California Court of Appeals, which ruled in December 2016 that the settlement was reasonable.
The California Supreme Court then declined to review the case, bringing an end to the litigation.
