USA Women equal pay dispute: Players say judge did not take into account their greater success compared to American men | Football News

U.S. women’s soccer team players have appealed to an appeals court to reinstate their equal pay claim, saying their greater success compared to the American men’s side has not been taken into account by a court judge who dismissed their case.

The group, led by Alex Morgan, sued the American Football Federation in March 2019, claiming that they were not paid the same amount under the collective agreement, which runs until December 2021, compared to what the team did. men under an agreement that expired in December 2018.

The women demanded more than $ 66 million in compensation under the Equal Remuneration Act and Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles in May 2020, ruling that women rejected the pay-as-you-go structure under the men’s agreement and accepted higher wages and more benefits than men. The 2018 World Cup could not find its way.

The women have asked the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals to overturn the first-instance verdict and get their salary claims back on track.

“According to it, the compensation was equal for women and men because the teams received about the same amount per game,” the players said in a statement of complaint filed on Friday.

“This approach was a one-size-fits-all approach, but not the other (performance). It was a serious mistake because the rewards for doing the job make up the majority of the players’ salaries, and women were the best in the world, while men were much less successful.” .

“In fact, the court has ruled that wages are equal if a woman can earn more money than men with more work and better performance.”

A summary of the USSF must be delivered by August 23 and a summary of the players ’voluntary response 21 days after the USSF submission. The case is likely to be referred to a three-judge panel for an oral hearing.

“U.S. football is committed to equal pay and to ensuring that our women’s national team remains the best in the world,” the federation said in a statement.

“In a ruling in favor of U.S. football on wage discrimination claims, the district court rightly noted that the women’s national team negotiated for a different pay structure than the men’s national team, and correctly ruled that the women’s national team paid both more. take aggregate and average per game against the men’s national team. “

The parties agreed on December 1 this year to agree on working conditions that would require charter flights, hotels, accommodation selection and the support of professional staff alongside the men’s team.

The USSF says it pays equally for the games it oversees, but not for competitions organized by the world football governing body.

FIFA has awarded $ 400 million in prize money to 32 teams at the 2018 World Cup among men, including $ 38 million to the French champions. It won $ 30 million for 24 teams at the 2019 Women’s World Cup, including $ 4 million after the Americans won the second straight title to the United States.

FIFA has raised the total amount of the 2022 Men’s World Cup to $ 440 million, and its president, Gianni Infantino, has offered to double the women’s award to $ 60 million for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, which brought the number of teams to 32.

Players have also criticized the USSF for selling marketing deals that cover both men and women.

The women said in a statement that the federation does not allow companies to sign sponsorship agreements solely with the USWNT, although some sponsors want to do so because they see the USWNT as a more marketable team.