A former cheerleader for the New York Jets sued the team on Tuesday over low wages and labor law violations, WXAX.com reported.
The ex-cheerleader, referred to as Krystal C. in reports, filed the lawsuit in New Jersey and is asking for back pay on behalf of the entire Jets Flight Crew.
In the legal documents, she claims each cheerleader was payed $150 per game and $100 per event. With everything the football organization required of them, the hourly wage totaled to far below the $8.25 minimum wage in the state.
"When you look at the actual hours worked versus what Krystal was paid, she only made $3.77 per hour," her attorney Patricia Pierce said.
In an interview with NBC News in California, she said she was inspired to take the team to court after an Oakland Raiders cheerleader did the same.
"Cheering in that field in that live stadium with thousands of fans and players is an experience you'll never forget," she told the station. "But I started feeling that there is this unfairness. I did all the math, and our paycheck wasn't summing up."
The Jets have not commented on the lawsuit yet.
In addition to the Jets and Raiders, cheerleaders for the Cincinnati Bengals and the Buffalo Bills also filed suits against their teams over wages.
In Aprill, the Bill's cheer squad -- known as the Jills -- suspended all operations for the upcoming season.
"There has been some talk of organizing a national cheer association as a result of these lawsuits, and that is a possibility," said lawyer Marc Panepinto, whose firm is representing the five former Jills.
Their lawsuit, which claims they were paid unfair wages, also said they were required to pass an embarassing body fat exam known as the "jiggle test."
"They work their rear ends off literally and figuratively to be Jills," Panepinto said. "You can't not pay people when they do work."
