Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders unionize, to start collective bargaining after pushing for better wages for years

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, one of the most famous dance groups in sports — let alone the country — have unionized after their limited pay and benefits have been the subject of discussion and controversy for years.

And their newly formed union is now recognized by the Dallas Cowboys as the collective bargaining representative for the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.

The union, officially named the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Association (DCCA), gained that recognition “after meaningful discussion” with the Cowboys, according to a Friday news release from the parties, which states that they are set to start collective bargaining.

During Season 2 of the Netflix docuseries “America’s Sweethearts” — one of the multiple television series that have profiled the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders — the dancers’ salaries were thrust back into the spotlight.

The cheerleaders said they were due to receive a 400% pay raise for the 2025 season, as reported by The Dallas Morning News.

While the show didn’t disclose the new wages, or detail the cheerleaders’ previous earnings, Jada McLean told The New York Teams that she was making $15 an hour and $500 for each appearance in 2024, her fifth and final year with the squad (compensation varies by experience, she explained).

After the raise that was revealed in Season 2 of “America’s Sweethearts,” though, veteran cheerleaders could be reeling in more than $75 an hour, McLean told the Times. That new contract, according to the June 2025 report from the Times, altered the pay structure for game days and other appearances as well, except it still didn’t provide health insurance, per McLean.

Back in 2018, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Erica Wilkins filed a federal fair wage lawsuit against the Cowboys, whom Forbes values at $17 billion. Wilkins, according to The Guardian, claimed she averaged $15,000 during her seasons and brought in less money than the Cowboys’ male mascot.

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders have been a staple for decades. Their high kicks are iconic, as is their “Thunderstruck” routine.

The group surged in popularity among a new generation of fans when Netflix debuted “America’s Sweethearts” in 2024. There have now been three seasons of that show.

Time will tell if, or how much, impending collective bargaining between DCCA and the Cowboys will improve the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders’ compensation.

It’s worth noting that, in 1995, the Buffalo Bills’ cheerleaders won a National Labor Relations Board ruling that allowed them to unionize, per the Associated Press via the Los Angeles Times. It was also reported at the time that the group, the Buffalo Jills, then joined the National Football League Cheerleaders Association.

That was reportedly the first union to represent a professional cheerleading squad. The union didn’t last, however, and the Jills suspended operations in 2014 in the wake of a lawsuit filed by former cheerleaders who, per ESPN, claimed they were underpaid and mistreated.