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The Dallas Cowboys are accused of severely underpaying their cheerleaders. Despite being the most famous cheerleading group in the world, it has been revealed that they are grossly underpaid. A new Netflix documentary centered around these cheerleaders reveals that these women, who reportedly generate more than $1 million annually for the franchise, make as much as a fast-food worker or substitute teacher.
The 36 women on the team spend hours at dance rehearsals, volunteer around Dallas, and perform at games. At one point in the docuseries, the cheerleaders’ coaching staff mentions that the dancers typically work 11 hours on game days.
However, the documentary revealed that, besides being Cowboys cheerleaders, most women hold full-time jobs. During their introductions, some cheerleaders stated that they work as doctors, nurses, accountants, fitness instructors, and in other professions.
Criticism of Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Pay
Jerry Jones’ daughter, Charlotte – an executive for the Cowboys who helps oversee the cheerleaders, responded to the issue about their pay on the Netflix show.
“They’re not paid a lot,” she said. “But the facts are that they actually don’t come here for the money. They come here for something that’s actually bigger than that to them.” She continued: “There are not a lot of opportunities in the field of dance to get to perform at an elite level. It is about being a part of something bigger than themselves.” She added that women become Cowboys Cheerleaders because it’s their passion and they get to be a part of the sisterhood.”
Social Media Outrage Over Cheerleader Pay
People on social media expressed their anger at those remarks. Many users criticized Charlotte Jones and the Cowboys team for not addressing the pay issues faced by the cheerleaders. Some commented that the cheerleaders work hard and deserve fair compensation, while others shared their disbelief at how little these athletes are paid despite the revenue they help generate for the team. One comment on the cheerleaders’ Instagram, which had about 1,200 likes, addressed most of the problem.
“I don’t think the show is reflecting positively on the Cowboys organisation. “These girls are overworked without appropriate pay and then Charlotte, who has her job because her daddy is a millionaire and handed it to her, defends it by saying it’s a privilege to represent the organisation. Yikes. Not a good look on the Cowboys. If they’re such an important brand and the organisation makes so much money off of them, then pay them accordingly.”
The docuseries never discloses how much the team’s cheerleaders make. Kat Puryear, a former Cowboys cheerleader, said in the docuseries that she earned about the same as a full-time Chick-fil-A worker. Another former Cowboys cheerleader, who joined the squad in 2021, said she received $12.50 per hour and $400 per game day.
There have been cases of cheerleading teams filing lawsuits against low wages. In 2017, Jane Doe, representing cheerleaders across the league, filed an antitrust lawsuit against more than 20 teams with cheerleading squads, NBC News reported. The suit alleged that the NFL conspired to keep cheerleader wages as low as possible. According to court documents, the court granted the NFL teams’ motion to dismiss the lawsuit in May 2017. Hopefully, this time something will be done about their absurdly low wages.
This report used information from The Spun.
