US House passes equal pay bill in latest women’s soccer win
The House passed a bill that guarantees equal pay for American women attending international events, legislation that grew out of the U.S. women’s soccer team’s long battle to be paid the same as men.
The Equal Pay for Team USA Act, passed Wednesday night, will require all athletes representing the United States in global competition to receive equal pay and benefits in their sport, regardless of gender. It covers more than 50 US national sports and requires the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee to handle oversight.
The bill had previously passed the Senate with unanimous support. He is now heading to President Joe Biden’s office.
« I…want to thank heroes like Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan, who brought this action against US Soccer, » Cantwell said of the American soccer stars, whose World Cup victory in 2019 served as a backdrop. melts at the beginning of the effort. « American women’s soccer led the charge after winning the World Cup and making it clear to everyone that female athletes deserve equal pay. »
The bill stems from a federal gender discrimination lawsuit that American women filed against US Soccer in 2019. Earlier this year, the women signed a new collective bargaining agreement that included equal pay structures for men. and women and a fair distribution of World Cup prizes.
WATCH | American soccer players settle their equal pay lawsuit:
The United States women’s soccer team won a six-year battle for equal pay with the men’s team.
Over the past decade, most Olympic sports in the United States have met USOPC standards for equal pay. But there remained inequalities between men’s and women’s soccer teams — whose roles in international events, such as the World Cup, resulted in unequal pay structures and differing oversight — that led lawmakers to seek to enshrine these standards in law.
« By sending this legislation to the President, both Houses have sent a clear message that this is the standard for all national teams in all sports and it underscores the importance of working with our athletes to achieve equal pay. , including the equalization of international awards, » Football Chairman Cindy Parlow Cone said in a statement announcing the passage of the bill.
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