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N.F.L. Claims It is Not Responsible for Oakland Raiders Cheerleaders' Pay Because of Immunity


One of the labor & employment law topics that has kept me interested this year is the ongoing struggle of N.F.L. cheerleaders to obtain higher pay and the subsequent wage and hour suits that have been brought as a result.  For those keeping score at home, the Oakland Raiders have been sued twice (at this time, there are five outstanding wage and hour suits brought by cheerleaders against four different N.F.L. teams).  The Raiders cases have been some of the most prevalent, and consequently the suits against that team have gotten a majority of coverage.

Earlier this month, the N.F.L. filed a response to one of the cheerleaders' suits brought against the Raiders (the second Raiders lawsuit), which also named the N.F.L. as a potentially liable party.  In its response, the League claimed that the cheerleaders cannot pursue the claim against the League because the N.F.L. and its teams are immune from all state labor code provisions.  Interestingly enough, the League does not claim it is immune from all state labor laws, rather the League claims it cannot "be constitutionally burdened with challenges brought under divergent state legislation."  As a basis for this argument, the League pointed the court to a California Supreme Court case that held players cannot bring antitrust suits against teams.  As a result, the League has attempted to draw the comparison that because of this case, the N.F.L. is subsequently immune from state labor laws and the subsequent wage and hour claims that have been brought.  

The League in essence is saying "Sorry, but this is not our problem" and points to the fact that it apparently was not a party to the Raiderette Agreement and had no authority to enforce it.  These are rather far reaching arguments and ones that I doubt will carry much weight in court.  Time will tell what happens with this case, but as the saying goes:  "Play On."


A copy of the response filed by the N.F.L. can be found here:  http://media.nbcbayarea.com/documents/NFLreply.pdf

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