Five players from the U.S. Women's soccer team are bringing to light the wage discrimination that female athletes are currently facing. The top female players, Hope Solo, Carli Lloyd, Becky Sauerbrunn, Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan filed the case to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The players are accusing U.S. Soccer of wage discrimination.
The U.S. Women's soccer team has had an incredibly history. They recently won the World Cup last year, and have a total of two World Cup championships and four Olympic championships with the players filing the complaint. Despite these amazing championship records, according to the players, they are earning as little as 40 percent to their male counterparts on the U.S. men's national team, who has been doing sub-par in the last few years. The men are even getting paid more on just showing up to the games than the women are when they win the games.
The New York Times provides a great info graphic on the wage disparities between female and male soccer players. A shocking statistic reported by the New York Times shows that a men's player can receive $5,000 for losing a friendly match and can earn up to $17,625 for winning while a women's player earns $1,350 for winning a friendly match but does not receive bonuses for a loss or a tie. Not only is this debate over money, but in a recent interview with former U.S. women's player, Amy Wambach, this deals with respect of the woman. There's a whole debate that includes the quality of the fields that the women play versus the men, the mode of transportation and the accommodations the female players receive versus male players at the different cities and countries the teams play in.
This federal complaint is truly bringing to light the economic problems in wage disparity in our country. As public figures, these players are the ones that can have a voice and highlight the discrimination that is occurring. Though most of us are not professional athletes, this lawsuit is the start of the wage discrimination conversation. And, for some girls and women out there, this action to uncover the truths behind the discrimination is a catalyst to empower women all over the world to stand up for their rights.
"We decided to do this for all the little girls across the country and around the world who deserve to have a voice. If we don't leverage the voice we have, we are letting them down." -Alex Morgan
