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Running head: MEGAN RAPINOE AND EQUAL PAY ISSUE
MEGAN RAPINOE AND EQUAL PAY 3
Megan Rapinoe and equal pay issue
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The male athletes have, for many years, received more pay than their female counterparts. This phenomenon has to lead to women to raise concerns over discrimination in wages. Megan Rapinoe has been very instrumental in advocating for equal pay rights for women in the sporting industry. Supporters for the abolition of the discrimination in the pay amongst women have cited discrimination in gender issues. The female athletes advocate for equal pay with their fellow male athletes. The female athletes have held a number of discussions with the football bodies to avert the consequences of going to court in finding a solution to this dispute. Over long periods, the discussions have reached a stalemate forcing Rapinoe and other activists to seek solutions in the court process. (Rowan, 2017) The athlete’s employers are a monopoly while the services offered by the women athletes are unique. This produces a situation that calls for an agreement in the pay issue. The employers and the athletes are well tied together by the nature of their operations and service. The women activists pushing for an equal pay rise are always ready and willing to engage in discussions with the employer that could see the stalemate resolved.
Rapinoe, who happens to be the women athlete team co-captain, insisted that the issue of equal pay remained a central issue amongst the several demands that they were making. She stated that the team was not willing to take anything less than equal pay with their male counterparts. Equal pay should not be subject to the outcome of the game, whether the team wins draws or loses. (Steidinger, 2020) The process of the lawsuit also seeks a number of extra demands such as harmonization of the equality in training sessions, equal playing, equal opportunities in the promotion of the game, and equal support amongst several other employment conditions. The spokesperson of the players insisted that the stalemate generated in the conversations was due to the unwillingness to change the nature of the United States soccer officials. The players and the representatives cite the football federation as the main perpetrators of the discrimination in wages and other working conditions. The players believe that the United States football federation has the intention of continuing to pay the female players fewer wages than the men counterparts. (Rowan, 2017) The athlete and their officials intend to use the support of their big base of fans, the club’s sponsors, and other peers across the world to produce the real image of how the players are treated by the soccer federation.
The soccer federation blames the athletes for taking unsuitable approaches when carrying out negotiations with them the federation feels that the athletes provide misleading information to the general public to generate more confusion in the stalemate. However, the federation maintains its stand that its aims are to bring an ultimate solution to the partner’s complains when the right approach is applied during the negotiations. Rapinoe, who has been a common figure in the women football world, cites racism in women football. In the year 2019, when she was named the player of the year award by world football federation FIFA, she used the opportunity to take up the title by addressing many issues that affected thee women in the football world. On the issue of equal pay, she called upon the soccer federation to pay the women soccer players equal to the men soccer players. Chants of “equal pay” “equal pay” could be heard during the world cup final in France. (Steidinger, 2020) During her speech, she mobilized women to go for nothing less than equal pay. The women athletes perceive unequal pay as having detrimental impacts on the investments women make when pursuing their football career. They cite comparison with men’s leagues unfair when the wages they receive are relatively lower compared to that of me.
The argument behind the lower pay in women athletes is the fact that women’s athletics tend to generate less revenue compared to men’s soccer. However, it should also be considered that women equally make great efforts as men in training and other sports activities. The campaigns to increase the women’s conditions in athletics yielded some benefits such as a significant increase in wages, the addition of game bonuses, improved game stipends, among others. However, the female athletes still felt that that was far from enough. The soccer federation has used the argument that less marketing of the women’s soccer compared to men’s soccer has resulted in low revenues being generated by the women games due to the reduced merchandise sales and lower number of fans who attend the matches. The issue of Rapinoe and equal pay issues should be considered not only from the equal pay per se but also from the aspect of marketing and promotion of the women’s soccer activities. Low marketing budgets in women leagues result in a lower fan base and less revenue. The equal pay issue cannot be put at the central point in the discussions of women’s athletes pays, but other issues such as foundations for promotion should also take precedence. Soccer federation in the united states believes that it is the low earnings brought about by women’s athletes that lead to the lower wages they are offered compared to men.
References
Rowan, J. N. (2017). Equal Protection for Equal Play: A Constitutional Solution to Gender Discrimination in International Sports. Vand. J. Ent. & Tech. L., 20, 919.
Steidinger, J. (2020). Stand Up and Shout Out: Women’s Fight for Equal Pay, Equal Rights, and Equal Opportunities in Sports. Rowman & Littlefield.