Being a Game Changer – Hope Solo Continues the Fight For Pay Equality
Former U.S. Soccer Women’s National team goalkeeper Hope Solo has been controversial for years. With a bold move to wage war for equal pay for women, Solo has sued U.S. Soccer U.S. in district court in Northern California for violation of the Equal Pay Act and discrimination.
As CNN states in Fighting for equality in a lonely world, “Making a difference can be a struggle. It can divide, it can offend, it can cast you aside.” Wise words when applied to the woman who used to be the force protecting the USA from being scored on.
It is an audacious move to sue U.S. Soccer but from Hope’s perspective, what has she got to lose?
Fired by U.S. Soccer for a litany of controversial issues, Solo was initially in an action along with former teammates Carli Lloyd, Becky Sauerbrunn, Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe filed in March 2016 with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission accusing U.S. Soccer of wage discrimination.
All these players were on the 2015 World Cup-winning roster. This original EEOC case remains pending.
Citing that female players earn dramatically less, according to the New York Times, as little as 40 percent of what players on the United States men’s national team earned, these top female soccer stars sought fair play.
Now, on her own, Solo has renewed the fight on her own against U.S. Soccer, the governing board for soccer in the USA.
Related Content: NEXT STEP IN THE FIGHT FOR EQUAL PAY on HOPESOLO.com.
The Suit, which was filed Friday against the U.S. Soccer Federation accuses the organization of paying its female players a fraction of what it pays their male counterparts in violation of the Equal Pay Act.
In the case filed in California Federal court, Solo is represented by attorney Timothy Moppin from El Cerrito, California.
In the case before the USOC panel, Solo has been represented by Baker Botts, a well-known corporate law firm.
