No Signs of Stopping: Another NFL Cheerleading Lawsuit

First it was the Oakland Raiders cheerleaders. Now, it’s a cheerleader from the Cincinnati Bengals who is suing her organization for the same reasons: low pay. Ben-Gals cheerleader Alexa Brenneman filed a Class Action complaint against the Bengals, claiming that, because she does not get paid for practices or appearances, she is paid less than $3 an hour – below minimum wage and even lower than what the Raiderettes claim they receive ($5 an hour). How did she figure this number? Alexa says that she and her teammates work around 300 hours a year as a Ben-Gal, with time spent at practice, games, photoshoots, appearances, and charity events. Each cheerleader is paid $90 at max for each home game. Do the math and that equals out to about $2.85 an hour. In case you’re not from Ohio, the state minimum wage is $7.85 an hour. Reported by NBC, Alexa’s lawyer Todd Naylor said that she filed after she saw the Raiderettes do so, because, “it gave her the courage to stand up for the squad.” While the Raiders have remained mum on their cheerleaders’ lawsuit against them, the Bengals organization isn’t. They released the following statement soon after the media caught wind of the news: “The Ben-Gals cheerleading program has long been a program run by former cheerleaders and has enjoyed broad support in the community and by members of the squad. Yesterday’s lawsuit appears to be a copycat lawsuit that mimics the one filed last month in California against a different NFL club. The Bengals will address the litigation in due course.” The U.S. Department of Labor has launched an investigation as a result of the Raiderettes’ lawuit and we’ll have to wait to find out the results and whether or not this new lawsuit will impact the Raiders’ case at all. While more and more cheerleaders have come forward with their stories on the hard work and little pay, many still defend their organizations and claim their job is still one of the best. You can read more about the details of this story on NBC. Do you think NFL cheerleaders should be paid more? Or, do you think it should be considered a hobby, rather than a job?