The U.S. women’s soccer players’ union and the sport’s governing body have agreed to a five-year collective bargaining agreement, improving standards for the national team and pro league and ensuring labor harmony through the next World Cup and Olympics.
“In a joint statement, the U.S. Women’s National Team Players Association and U.S. Soccer Federation said they have “ratified a new collective bargaining agreement which will continue to build the women’s program in the U.S., grow the game of soccer worldwide and improve the professional lives of players on and off the field. We are proud of the hard work and commitment to thoughtful dialogue reflected through this process, and look forward to strengthening our partnership moving forward.”
In recent years, the players have raised issues about compensation and working conditions compared to their male counterparts, casting a shadow over the efforts of the most successful women’s team in soccer history and pitting the federation against wildly popular athletes, such as Carli Lloyd and Alex Morgan.
In March 2016, the players filed a federal complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, charging the USSF with wage discrimination. The case remains active.
Financial specifics were not immediately available, but people with knowledge of the pact said it includes:
Increase in direct compensation
Increase in bonus compensation
Enhanced benefits related to travel and hotels
Per diem equal to the U.S. men’s team
Greater financial support for players who are pregnant
Financial support for players adopting a child
Also, in a key gain, the players’ association will now control group likeness rights for licensing and nonexclusive rights in sponsorship categories where USSF does not have an agreement.”
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More posts on women’s soccer
Solo: A Memoir of Hope, by Hope Solo
When Nobody Was Watching: My Hard-Fought Journey to the Top of the Soccer World by Carli LLoyd
The audiobooks for Solo: A Memoir of Hope and When Nobody Was Watching: My Hard-Fought Journey to the Top of the Soccer World are both available as free downloads via an Audible.com promotion! More info on the promotion, plus a huge list of available feminist books here.
