Buffalo Jills
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The Buffalo Jills were the
cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...
squad for the
Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
professional
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team.


History

The Bills had cheerleaders in 1960 known simply as the Buffalo Bills Cheerleaders. At the time, they were a group of eight Buffalo State College cheerleaders. They ran this squad until 1965 and went without cheerleaders in 1966. In 1967, the Buffalo Jills were founded by Jo Ann Gaulin and progressed from a few young women in wool uniforms to a squad of 36 young ladies in more-revealing attire. They annually sold a swimsuit calendar since the 2000-2001 season and participated in various events in the Western New York area. Troop visits were a regular occurrence as well and a group of eight girls spent February 22 - March 4, 2007, visiting troops in Iraq, the only NFL squad on that tour at the time. In 1986, the Bills discontinued their official ties to the squad and contracted them out to third parties beginning with the fast food chain
Mighty Taco Mighty Taco is a Mexican food, Mexican-style fast-food restaurant chain in the Buffalo, New York, United States, area. Mighty Taco restaurants are owned and operated by Mighty Taco Inc., a privately owned corporation. The Super Mighty, El Niño Bu ...
. The Bills' continued role (or lack thereof) in employing the squad is currently being disputed in court. In December 2014, Justice Timothy Drury of the
New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...
found that the Bills set the terms of the Jills' contracts and approved them. In 1995, seeking respect and better pay, the Jills formed the first cheerleaders union in the NFL. In 2002, the new director instituted an Ambassador Squad, a group of 8-12 Buffalo Jills who did not dance on the sidelines and field. This was not only to allow the squad to more easily meet the demands of all the public appearances they were asked to make, but allowed more young women to make the squad. The Ambassador Squad Jills became a good way to contribute for young women who either did not have the dancing ability required to make the field, or did not have the free time to attend all of the dance squad practices. In 2006, a pair of Jills swept their first round events in the first year of the
NFL Cheerleader Playoffs ''NFL Cheerleader Playoffs'' is a television show that debuted in 2006 on the NFL Network. The official channel of the National Football League premiered each episode on Saturdays at 3 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). The competition was produced by IMG ...
before falling in the second round. In 2008, the Jills were the first NFL squad to be multi-national, performing at "home" games both in
Orchard Park, New York Orchard Park is a town in Erie County, New York. It is an outer ring suburb southeast of Buffalo. As of the 2010 census, the population was 29,054, representing an increase of 5.13% from the 2000 census figure. The town contains a village als ...
, and in
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,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
.


Lawsuit and suspension of operations

Shortly after the squad's 35 members were selected for the 2014 season, a lawsuit was filed on April 22 by five former Jills that alleged the cheerleaders were not paid for hours they worked. Management then responded 2 days later by "suspending operations" of the cheerleading squad. On July 3, 2014, NFL Commissioner
Roger Goodell Roger Stokoe Goodell (born February 19, 1959) is an American businessman who is currently the commissioner of the National Football League (NFL). On August 8, 2006, Goodell was chosen to succeed retiring commissioner Paul Tagliabue. He was chosen ...
was subpoenaed to testify in the case after a document presented by the Bills in their defense contained his signature. On May 28, 2015 Queens, NY Assemblywoman
Nily Rozic Nily Rozic is a legislator from Queens, New York and a member of the New York State Assembly. Rozic represents New York's 25th District, which spans the northeast portions of Queens, including the communities of Flushing, Queensboro Hill, Hillcr ...
introduced a bill in the New York State Assembly to change the New York State labor law to make it clear that professional cheerleaders are employees of the teams for which they cheer. On May 18, 2017, the plaintiffs scored a major victory in their lawsuit as a New York State Court has ruled the Jills to be non-exempt employees, not independent contractors. However, the court denied partial summary judgement as to whether the Bills themselves were their direct employers, and a jury will decide who the employers were unless a settlement is reached. In November 2017,
Cumulus Media Cumulus Media, Inc. is an American broadcasting company and is the third largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States behind Audacy and iHeartMedia. As of June 2019, Cumulus lists ownership of 428 stations in 87 ...
, who purchased
Citadel Broadcasting Citadel Broadcasting Corporation was a Las Vegas, Nevada-based broadcast holding company. Citadel owned 243 radio stations across the United States and was the third-largest radio station owner in the country. Only iHeartMedia and Cumulus Media ...
(one of the primary sponsors of the Jills), entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and in January 2018, the company sought to terminate any remaining Bills-related debts it owed. As of June 2019, the lawsuit had yet to be settled. Bills owners
Terry Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence (given name), Terence or Terrier (masculine). People Male * Terry Albrit ...
and
Kim Pegula Kim S. Pegula ( née Kerr; born June 7, 1969) is an American businesswoman and with her husband Terry Pegula, one of the principal owners of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. She is also the president of Pegula Sports and Enterta ...
, who completed their purchase of the team after the lawsuit started, have yet to comment on their future plans for the Jills, though they have maintained the cheerleading squad for the
Buffalo Bandits The Buffalo Bandits are a professional box lacrosse team in the East Division of the National Lacrosse League (NLL). They play at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. The Bandits played in the Major Indoor Lacrosse League from 1992 to 1997, t ...
, another one of their sports properties. On March 3, 2022, a settlement was reached in which Cumulus admitted no wrongdoing. A $4 million payment was made by the company in the form of Cumulus stock to the former Jills listed in the suit, while the Buffalo Bills agreed to pay $3.5 million to the Jills. Despite the cessation of the cheerleading squad, former cheerleaders have organized the ''Buffalo Jills Alumni Association'', which carries out reunion events every few years, and regularly carries out community service activities.


Notable members

*Katherine "Katie" Kaczor-Bichler (2007–08), contestant of ''
The Amazing Race 22 ''The Amazing Race 22'' is the twenty-second season of the American reality television show ''The Amazing Race''. It featured eleven teams of two competing in a race around the world. The season premiered on CBS on February 17, 2013, and the two ...
''


References


External links


Buffalo Pro Cheer Blog
{{NFL Cheerleaders National Football League cheerleading squads Performing groups established in 1967 1967 establishments in the United States 2015 disestablishments in the United States