【】

Since five members of the U.S. women's soccer team filed a complaint earlier this year alleging pay discrimination, the U.S. Soccer Federation has disputed their claims in media interviews and statements.
On Tuesday, the governing body issued its most comprehensive rebuke in a 20-page letter filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency responsible for investigating the players' allegations.
The letter insists that those claims are "false," and that members of the women's team not only receive equitable pay, but in some cases are paid more than the top-earning members of the men's team.
Composed by the federation's legal firm in the matter, Latham & Watkins LLP, the letter reiterates support for the women's team as it attacks their evidence of a pay gap.
"The suggestion that U.S. Soccer has been anything other than strongly supportive of the [women's national team] is deeply disappointing and inaccurate," the letter reads.
"The suggestion that U.S. Soccer has been anything other than strongly supportive of the [women's national team] is deeply disappointing and inaccurate."
Pay disparities, according to the federation, are not the result of gender bias, but a trio of factors: higher revenue produced by the men's team; the decision made by the women's team to choose a salary and benefits instead of a bonus structure; and the timing of collective bargaining agreements negotiated by each team separately.
The women's team also has a "pay equity" clause in its contract, which is meant to create parity between the teams, their compensation and their respective share of game revenue.
The federation also alleges that, from 2012 to 2015, 14 of the highest-earning soccer players on both rosters were women. They earned an average of $695,269 during that four-year period, or 2.2% less than the average male U.S. soccer player in that same group. Among the 50-highest earning players, 23 were women who earned nearly more than $35,000 than the average male player in the same cohort.
Jeffrey Kessler, a lawyer representing the women, criticized the federation's response in a statement to Mashable.
"The USSF letter is shameful. It compares men who play many fewer games than the women over the same period of time and then claims the discrimination is not that great," Kessler said. "It's time for the USSF to end its illegal and demeaning treatment of these women."
The different competition schedules, compensation structures and bargaining agreements between the two teams makes it difficult for the casual sports fan to evaluate and compare potential disparities.
In their EEOC complaint, for example, members of the women's team alleged making four times less than the men's team. They pointed to an annual $72,000 salary and $1,350 bonus for each victory, contrasting that with the potential for men to make a minimum of $100,000 annually, even while losing.
SEE ALSO:U.S. Soccer star Carli Lloyd takes on women's wage gap in New York Times op-edThe federation did argue that disparities between per diem expenses were likely temporary; the amounts were previously identical before the men's team negotiated a new contract.
Beyond disputing the discrimination claims, the federation devoted several passages of the letter to its financial and professional support of the women's team and their fledgling professional league.
At times the letter also seems to imply that the women's team is lucky, or should be grateful for their treatment:
"We doubt that many, if any, other women’s national teams around the world are compensated comparably to — if not better than — their male counterparts, or that many national federations have been willing to agree to pay equity clauses to ensure that women’s national team players are compensated fairly as the revenue their games produce grows."
The letter is the latest development in increasingly contentious contract negotiations between the female players and U.S. Soccer. The team is scheduled to compete in this summer's Olympics for its fifth gold medal, but have indicated they are prepared to strike before the games.
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
TopicsGender
相关文章
Katy Perry talks 'Rise,' her next batch of songs, and how to survive Twitter
Katy Perry recently surpassed 90 million followers on Twitter, making her the person with the most f2025-04-27- 2014冬季奧運會男子花樣滑冰金牌?是羽生結弦2014年2月,年僅19歲的羽生結弦奪得索契冬奧會金牌,成為亞洲首位冬奧會男子單人滑冠軍。羽生結弦,1994年12月7日出生於日本宮城縣仙台市,日本花樣 。2025-04-27
- 牛奶兌水給寶寶喝可以嗎?你好!根據你的描述考慮牛奶可以兌水給孩子喝的,建議給孩子喝奶最好喝純牛奶添加劑比核桃奶添加劑比較少純牛奶可以加水嗎?回答你的問題,純牛奶可以加水,但是不建議你加的太多。如果純牛2025-04-27
- 包菜絲怎麽炒好吃?素炒包菜這樣炒才好吃,做法步驟:1.把包菜的葉子剝下來,放到清水中投洗幹淨,瀝淨水分,再把包菜切成絲。2.西紅柿切去果蒂,再把西紅柿切成三角塊,尖椒去蒂。包心菜切絲怎麽炒好吃-九州醉2025-04-27
Uber's $100M settlement over drivers as contractors may not be enough
UPDATE: Sept. 7, 2016, 4:41 p.m. EDT 。 A ruling in a different case on Wednesday, Sept. 7 may have ch2025-04-27- 前言:國家一級籃球運動員有什麽麽條件籃球運動員凡符合下列條件之一,都可以申請一級運動員稱號。1.參加全國運動會獲決賽權的各隊運動員從事三年以上專業訓練。上場時間累計不少於50%,申請人數 :第一至四名,2025-04-27
最新评论