There is a debate going on about how the NFL pays (Or doesn't pay) its Cheerleaders. This is a part-time "once-a-week" job that requires looking hot and dancing around.
For a billion-dollar business operation (as every NFL franchise is) -- pay the Cheerleaders!
Peter King's MMQB quotes a female staffer, and former Cheerleader @kalynkahler as saying: "It’s time to rebrand (sic) these women as athletes, not sex symbols, so they can be treated with the respect they deserve. No more swimsuit calendars, online voting for your favorite cheerleader, or marketing the teams with creepy slogans like, ‘Football's Fabulous Females."
While I disagree with this assessment, Cheerleaders are entertainment and should be leveraged to sell calendars and whatever else the team owner is trying to sell to make a profit, Cheerleaders should be paid based upon what they bring to the table. Plus benefits.
I completely agree with Kahler's second point:
"They should receive proper medical treatment for their injuries. They should have security guards to protect them when they mingle with fans at events and tailgates before the game. They should be allowed to use their last names, and use this job to build their own dance and entertainment careers.”
Being a Cheerleader isn't easy. Looking insanely attractive is a full-time job. Dancing around in a bathing suit for hours on end and modeling for calendars and getting shipped to some used car dealership brings cash money to team owners. Cheerleaders should get a cut of what they bring in.
For a billion-dollar business, a $1 million allocation is more than reasonable. If you have 10 Cheerleaders, they should each earn a pre-tax $100,000 salary.
Then again, if I owned a NFL team, I would hire Phish to play halftime every week and there would be no need for Cheerleaders.
[The Amazing KD]
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