The New York Jets have agreed to pay almost $324,000 in a class-action lawsuit filed by its cheerleaders over wages, reports ESPN.
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The 52 women said they were paid $150 per game and issued uniforms. They were also forced to pay for hair care, make up and transportation.
The women included in the suit will receive between $2,559 and $5,913 each depending on whether they were part of the cheerleading team for one or both of the 2012 and 2013 seasons.
“The Jets deny the claims and the parties have agreed to a settlement to avoid the expense, time and distraction of litigation,” the statement read.
Attorney Patricia Pierce told the Bergen Record that “when you figure all that up” in addition to the other expenses paid by the New York Jets cheerleaders, “they were making less than minimum wage”.
The Jets reportedly will have to shell out roughly $324,000 to their cheerleaders in order to finally put a class-action lawsuit to bed.
The initial lawsuit was filed in August 2014 by a former cheerleader identified as “Krystal C”. The lawyers will receive $112,000 in fees, and a claims administrator will receive $6,500.
TheBergen Record reports that there were 52 former and current cheerleaders listed in the Bergen County Case.
Part of the settlement also acknowledges that the Jets organization does not admit to “any liability of wrongdoing whatsoever”.
Last year Rozic, (D-Queens), co-authored an open letter with N.Y. State Sen.
“The state of NY has invested a lot of money in the Buffalo Bills”, she said.
“I applaud the New York Jets for recognizing the hard work of their cheerleaders and coming to a settlement”, Savino said in a statement.
The team settled with the women in a New Jersey court.
“This would hopefully start calling attention to how these women ” are underpaid and not protected,” she said. Loretta Weinberg sponsored a bill that would extend employment protections to cheerleaders affiliated with professional sports teams.
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Their suits were filed just as the National Football League found itself embroiled in an ugly public relations battle over its domestic violence policy.
