Equal pay: American football world champions dismissed for complaint

It was a particularly bitter defeat for Megan Rapinoe and her teammates. A federal judge dismissed Friday May 1 in a summary judgment the request of the players of the United States football team, world champions in title, in their quest for equal pay with the men's team.

With a trial scheduled to begin on June 16, judge Gary Klausner of the United States District Court for Central California in Los Angeles rejected the complainants' main argument of wage discrimination. He referred the grievances of the complainants on unequal treatment in accommodation, travel and other areas to a later judgment.

In his 32-page decision, the judge also explained that the complainants had refused, on an unspecified date, an agreement that would have allowed them to be paid fairly with the players of the national men's team.

 "The history of negotiations between the parties shows that the women's team rejected a proposal to be paid on the same salary basis as the men's team, and that it gave up higher bonuses as advantages, among which higher basic remuneration and the guarantee of a larger number of players under contract ", he established.

"We will never stop fighting for equality"

Meanwhile, in terms of the main part of the case, it is a very heavy blow taken by the players of the national team, including the star of the team and feminist activist Megan Rapinoe, who fought for their cause for several years.

The latter did not fail to react on Twitter, with a single sentence reflecting their determination: "We will never stop fighting for equality".

We will never stop fighting for EQUALITY.

Their spokesman Molly Levinson said in a statement that the American players were going to "appeal". "We are shocked and disappointed with today's decision, but we will not give up our hard work for equal pay," said their spokesman.       

1/2 We are shocked and disappointed with today's decision, but we will not give up our hard work for equal pay. We are confident in our case and steadfast in our commitment to ensuring that girls and women will not be valued as lesser just because of their gender.

The players of the American team, winners of four of the eight Women's World Cups, including the last two in 2015 and 2019, were claiming $ 66 million in back wages, under the law of equal remuneration and the Civil Rights Act.

They had established this amount based on the disparities between the bonuses distributed by Fifa during the Men's and Women's World Cups.

In 2014, the Germans won $ 35 million for their coronation in Brazil, while the French earned $ 38 million after triumphing in Russia in 2018.

The 2015 and 2019 world champions, for their part, raised a total of $ 6 million during the two tournaments, or 12 times less.

"Blatant sexism"  

Initiated in March 2019, the legal action took a particularly acrimonious turn two months ago, when a file filed by lawyers of the federation made the argument that playing in the men's national team required a level higher skill, expressed in speed and strength, and assumed greater responsibility.

These words had aroused immediate and widespread indignation on the part of the players, including Megan Rapinoe who had accused her Federation of "blatant sexism" in the files of the complainants, managers and sponsors such as Coca-Cola.

The president of the Federation Carlos Cordeiro had been forced to resign and was replaced by the vice-president Cindy Parlow Cone, former international player who had immediately withdrawn the annoying argument, in order to calm the situation.

"We are eager to work with the national women's team to move forward in a positive way. We are determined to continue this work to ensure that our selection remains the best in the world," replied the leader, anxious to avoid the trial of the June 16.

With AFP

The France 24 week summary invites you to come back to the news that marked the week

Take international news everywhere with you! Download the France 24 app