the ladies league

Breaking Barriers: Women in the NFL

January 9, 2017

ESPN Doesn't Quite Get the Top 25 Women in College Basketball Right

November 26, 2016

"Equality For All Takes Each Of Us Making An Effort"

August 9, 2016

Exactly How Good Is Monica Abbott?

July 26, 2016

Eating & Competing: The Dangers of Male Athletes and Eating Disorders

July 20, 2016

What is Wrong With the Phoenix Mercury? Just Take a Look at the Numbers

June 22, 2016

Post WCWS: A Team-by-Team Performance Analysis

June 14, 2016

Eating & Competing: The Dangers of Female Athletes’ Eating Disorders

June 14, 2016

What You'll See in OKC: Pre-Tourney Analysis of the NCAA Women's College World Series

June 2, 2016

Downgrading Excellence

June 2, 2016

Please reload

Recent Posts

The Guide to Understanding a Workout Warrior: 13 Things to Know

April 6, 2016

Guest Feature- Beer & Bachelorettes: Acting Like A Lady During Super Bowl 50

February 18, 2016

A Special Moment, and A Special Play: Orlando Pride Defeats The Seattle Reign 2-0

May 9, 2016

1/4
Please reload

Featured Posts

Breaking Barriers: Women in the NFL

January 9, 2017

|

Rachel Maag

- Sonia Gysland, athletic trainer for the Pittsburgh Steelers 

 

This may not be well known, but women as athletic trainers have been amazingly scarce within the NFL for many years.  Why is this amazing?  Over 50% of athletic trainers are women.  But in the NFL, women are not often hired to be athletic trainers. There are female medical advisors, coaches, lawyers, and even a few owners, but for some reason, athletic training is having a hard time following suit.

 

Why are women scarce in this field? One explanation is simple discrimination. When hiring, the first thing an employer sees on a resume is a name. And a study done by Stanford University showed that the exact same resume, with a male’s name or a female’s name on it, the male would be hired more than not, and with higher pay

 

Recently some very small progress has been made to reduce this barrier.  Sonia Gysland, Pittsburgh Steelers Assistant Athletic Trainer since 2011, followed in the footsteps of the NFL's first female athletic trainer, Ariko Iso. And since then other teams have been looking to get females on internships that can ultimately lead to a full time position with teams. Gysland stated that she thought it was “easier for a team to hire a female when they’ve already done so in the past and it had worked out great.”

 

What about the other teams that have yet to do so? Do they take the same chance and follow, or do they continue to hire men like they have done for so long? The question is that if it hadn’t worked out for Iso, would Gysland have been offered the job based on merit and previous involvement alone? I like to think yes.

 

But for this slow moving transition, it may be too radical to believe that a woman would be hired because of what they can bring to the team, instead of what the team thinks they are genetically lacking. Gysland thinks that it is not the career itself that is so slow to move females in, but the coaches and ownership who have had a “right” way for so long that they are the ones to convince that women are just as competent, just as hard working, and just as necessary as men. 

 

Remember, you are not likely to hire the best person if you eliminate at least half of the potential hiring pool before you even start.  This is a lesson all NFL teams should follow.

 

Rachel Maag

 

Disclaimer: I am in no way, shape, or form a certified Athletic trainer, only a student. My opinion is just that. My knowledge is based on my schooling for this degree which is ever-changing and may be outdated at some times. What I post is solely of my discretion and this article is in no way connected with my university, with my program, with any certified trainer’s I am associated with, or the National Athletic Training Association.

 

 

Please reload

Follow Us

I'm busy working on my blog posts. Watch this space!

Please reload

Search By Tags

January 2017 (1)

November 2016 (1)

August 2016 (1)

July 2016 (2)

June 2016 (5)

May 2016 (3)

April 2016 (8)

March 2016 (8)

February 2016 (10)

January 2016 (1)

Please reload

Archive
  • Facebook Basic Square
  • Twitter Basic Square
  • Google+ Basic Square
  • HOME

  • Blog