USWNT now can appeal a judge's decision to May to reject most of their equal pay claimsGETTY IMAGES
U.S. Soccer and the USWNT said that they have "resolved the players' outstanding claims about working conditions," according to Andrew Das of the N.Y. TIMES. The working condition issues were settled through "equal parts labor peace and legal maneuvering," and the women's players "cleared the way to appealing a judge’s decision in May that had rejected most of their equal pay claims." For the federation, removing "one of the last unresolved items in the team’s wage-discrimination lawsuit allowed its new leadership team to rid itself of one more point of contention in a dispute they would prefer to see end," and to "signal that U.S. Soccer is open to more accommodations." USSF President Cindy Parlow Cone said that the deal "signaled the federation’s efforts 'to find a new way forward' with the women’s team and, hopefully, a way out of the rest of the litigation." Das notes in some ways, the agreement "simply codified an effort that U.S. Soccer had already begun to remove any differences in areas like staffing, travel, hotel accommodations and venue choices related to men’s and women’s national team matches." The USSF said that it "would put the deal into effect immediately." A USSF official familiar with the agreement said that the settlement "does not address past working conditions or involve any payments to the women’s players." Das notes the new agreement on working conditions is "expected to be included" in the new CBAs for both national teams (N.Y. TIMES, 12/2).
SETTLEMENT DETAILS: USA TODAY's Nancy Armour notes under the settlement, USWNT games in the U.S. "will be played on grass 'in almost all circumstances'" and the USSF "will provide 'an equal number of charter flights' for both teams along with 'comparable budgets' for hotel accommodations." U.S. Soccer also "will provide an 18- to 21-person support staff for each team," and each team "will have a medical staff that includes a lead doctor and a pool of two to five additional physicians" (USA TODAY, 12/2). In Philadelphia, Jonathan Tannenwald notes the settlement "includes a reporting mechanism for players to flag violations." It also "gives the women's players' union the option to match any changes to terms that the men’s union gets." The new deal's terms "will stand for four full years from when the settlement becomes official" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 12/2).
POSITIVE STEP: ESPN.com's Graham Hays noted the players made it clear that while a settlement is a "positive step, it is mostly positive in their eyes because it allows them to focus on the wage discrimination claims." The plaintiffs "were unable to move forward with an appeal relating to those claims until resolution of the working conditions claims through settlement or trial." The settlement on working conditions "offers no indication that the two sides are any closer to resolving their long-standing differences on issues of compensation" (ESPN.com, 12/1). THE ATHLETIC's Meg Linehan noted while Parlow Cone and the federation "understand the players intend to appeal on the equal pay front," the messaging is that the settlement "shows better collaboration from both sides." Both sides "appear happy ... and while there are some steps before it’s approved," it is "also clear both sides expect the settlement to be approved." It has been Parlow Cone who has "quietly worked to shift the tone at the federation -- away from an organization that could argue its own women's national team was inferior to it’s men’s, and to a governing body that the players might trust again" (THEATHLETIC.com, 12/1).
