Ex-Texans Cheerleaders Sue Team over Sex Discrimination, Unsafe Conditions, More

Five former Houston Texans cheerleaders filed a federal lawsuit Friday alleging they failed to receive proper compensation and were mistreated by the team during their terms of employment.

According to the Houston Chronicle's David Barron and Samantha Ketterer, the cheerleaders cited "failure to receive proper payment, failure to pay minimum wage, unpaid overtime compensation, assault by threat of bodily injury, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress and breach of contract" as the basis of their suit. 

Friday's filing comes 10 days after a separate group of former Texans cheerleaders sued the club and its cheerleading supervisor alleging they were not compensated according to minimum-wage laws, body-shamed and physically assaulted by fans. 

"We are proud of the cheerleader program and have had hundreds of women participate and enjoy their experience while making a positive impact in the local community," Texans vice president of communications Amy Palic said in a statement, per Barron. "We are constantly evaluating our procedures and will continue to make adjustments as needed to make the program enjoyable for everyone."

The two lawsuits follow a recent groundswell in legal action by former cheerleaders across the league. 

In April, ex-cheerleaders for the New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins offered to settle a discrimination suit against the NFL in exchange for a four-hour "good faith" meeting with commissioner Roger Goodell and a symbolic $1 apiece, according to the New York Times' Jon Branch. 

Additionally, five former Washington cheerleaders provided detailed accounts to New York Times' Juliet Macur of a 2013 trip to Costa Rica where they felt the team was "pimping" them out to sponsors and suite holders.