Question

Jack, Jills and the Buffalo Bills

Before the 2014 season, Cailin Ferrari had conflicting thoughts about continuing her dream of being a member of the Buffalo Jills, (the Buffalo Bill’s cheerleading team) or to seek employment elsewhere. For the past 48 years, the Jills were an important part of the Bills organization, entertaining fans both on and off the playing field. However, after some careful research, the Jills found themselves wondering if they should continue to entertain fans under tense circumstances.

Buffalo Jills

Established in 1967, the Jills began as a permanent replacement for the cheerleaders from Buffalo State College who previously cheered from the Buffalo Bills sidelines. The Jills cheerleaders recognized for their high spirit, dedication, and humanitarian nature, had become a favorite for the city of Buffalo. After 42 seasons of entertaining Bills fans, the Jills established the Buffalo Jills Alumni Association.

Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills, located in Buffalo NY, is currently owned by Terrence and Kim Pegula. In 2016, Forbes reported the team value at one billion, five-hundred million dollars (see exhibit 1). New Era Field, formally Rich Stadium and later Ralph Stadium, has been the home for the Buffalo Bills since 1973. The stadium has a capacity seating for 71,870 Bills fans. NEF is currently within the top 15 in capacity in the National Football League.

Exhibit 1: Bills Value Breakdown

Financial Data
Sport	$1,118M
Market	$179M
Stadium	$139M
Brand	$63M

Legal Issues

In April 2014, five former Bills cheerleaders sued the team over a pay system that had them working hundreds of hours for free at games and at mandatory public appearances. Soon after, management suspended the dance team.

The class action lawsuit claimed the Jills cheerleaders were paid below minimum wage and were required to attend unpaid events. The former cheerleaders also alleged that the Jills were wrongly classified as independent contractors and were subjected to policies that violate the state's $8 per hour minimum wage law and other workplace rules (Rodak, 2014). The Jills were not paid for games or practices and had to make 20 to 35 community and charity events each season.

The Jills stated that at some of these sponsored events, they were made to feel uncomfortable by male attendees. They were forced to adhere to strict dress codes and behavioral guidelines set by the team. According to the Jills, the Buffalo Bills controlled everything from their physical appearance to music selection (Garcia, 2016). The Bills organization claimed the Jills were not traditional employees but independent contractors.

In a 1995 ruling by the National Labor Relations Board, the Jills were classified as non-exempt employees. A former employee of Cumulus Broadcasting Co. (formally Citadel Broadcasting Co), named Stephanie E. Mateczun, managed the Jills. The contracts gave Citadel/Cumulus the exclusive rights to run the Jills, and required each member of the cheerleading squad to sign independent contractor agreements that the Jills would not be paid for working Bills games (Davis, 2017).

National Football Association

Currently, only six teams in the National Football Association (NFL) do not have a cheerleading team, either by personal choice or in the Jills case, suspension: Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, New York Giant, Pittsburgh Steelers, Green Bay Packers, and Chicago Bears.

The NFL has remained quiet with this issue. Rodger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL stated, he had no knowledge of the Jills’ selection, training, compensation and/or pay practices. According to the NFLPA (National Football League Players Association), the NFL protects its players but has no mention of its cheerleader teams. As reported by the NFLPA website, the National Football League Players Association:

Represents all players in matters about wages, hours and working conditions.

Protects their rights as professional football players

Assures that all the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement are met.

Decision

New York State Supreme Court Justice Mark A. Montour decided the cheerleaders' 2005 agreement they signed were unenforceable, and that the plaintiffs were non-exempt employees and they were misclassified as independent contractors.

In response to the lawsuit, the Cheerleaders' Fair Pay Act would force team owners to treat the Jills as employees rather than independent contractors. The change would mean teams like the Buffalo Bills would have to comply with much stricter New York labor laws when it comes to cheerleaders' wages and workplace protections. Was the contract negotiable between both parties? Was the contract by the Jills signed under duress? What employment laws did the Buffalo Bills violate? Should the NFL create a regulated pay scale for all NFL cheerleaders?

Questions to Answer.

1. What employment laws (if any) did the Buffalo bills violate? Please explain your answer thoroughly in either scenario?

2. Do you think the ruling was fair? Was there any ethical concerns in the case? Discuss your view point.

3. Discuss the social responsbility (if any) for the NFL and the Buffalo Bills.

4. Should the NFL creat a regulated pay scale for all NFL Cheerleaders? Or a union for the cheerleading team? Why or why not?

5. Was the contract negotiable between both parties?

Answer 1

1). The Buffalo Bills treated the members of their cheerleading team as independen contractors. However, as per the case, in a 1995 ruling by the National Labor Relations Board, the Jills were classified as non-exempt employees. The former Bills cheerleaders accused that they were made to work hundreds of hours for free at games and at mandatory public appearances. The Jills were not paid for games or practices and had to make 20 to 35 community and charity events each season. They were subjected to policies that violate the state's $8 per hour minimum wage law and other workplace rules. This means that the Buffalo Bills violated a number of labor standards such as Minimum wage, Hours of work, Illegal deductions and Payment of wages and wage supplements.

2). The ruling was fair, since it corresponded to the earlier 1995 ruling. Also ethically it was correct because the cheerleading team was working primarily as its employees and were made to perform in each and every of their games and other events, which means that they were not just independent contractors who only worked according to their contracts.

3). Yes both the NFL and the Buffalo Bills had a social responsibility towards the cheerleaders. As per the NFLPA website, the NFL protects its players but has no mention of its cheerleader teams. Almost all the teams in NFL had a cheerleading group. Considering this, the NFL also has a responsibility to look after them just like it looks after the players.

Buffalo Jills had been working for the Buffalo Biils for almost 50 years, but had been underpaid and mistreated. An association that long deserves to be respected well by the employer. But inspite of a legal ruling, the cheerleaders were still treated like contractual workers only.

4). Yes the NFL should create a regulated payscale for all NFL cheerleaders, just like it has for its other employees as well as the players. However there is no need for a Union. The cheerleaders only wanted to have the same rights as regular employees and not to be treated as contractual workers, which allowed the Bills to take advantage of the contract and exploit the cheerleaders' rights. This would ensure that the cheerleaders are paid correctly for the NFL games at least, and will not be compelled to take part in other unpaid events for the sake of contracts.

5). The contract was not negotiable between both parties. The contracts gave Citadel/Cumulus the exclusive rights to run the Jills, and required each member of the cheerleading squad to sign independent contractor agreements that the Jills would not be paid for working Bills games. The 1995 ruling meant that the cheerleaders were non-exempt employess, which is completely different from contractual workers. The Citadel violated the rights of the cheerleaders by forcing them to sign the contracts. And the Bills took advantage of this fact and never further treated the cheerleaders as employees.