Former Texans cheerleaders offer different view in wake of harassment allegations

It's been more than 10 years since Edith Patel cheered and danced at NRG, which at the time was Reliant Stadium.[br /][br /]She says she loved her days as a Texans cheerleader.[br /][br /][media ID="3600194" /][br /][Ads /][br /]"To me it was amazing opportunity and I love everything about it, and it was all the perks when I was on the team that that was even just an added bonus," Patel said.[br /][br /]She says she got a monthly hair allowance and hundreds of dollars worth of makeup. She says the team even paid for appearances, and their driving mileage.[br /][br /]Patel says when she heard about the allegations from five other former Texans cheerleaders that "it's very shocking when I hear about that because I felt like we were treated greatly. I mean, by the coach, by the Texans, and staff, even to the point where at the end of the year we got a piece of jewelry for every year that you were on the team."[br /][br /]But in a lawsuit, the former Texans cheerleaders painted a different picture.[br /][Ads /][br /]They claim the Texans "failed to fully compensate the $7.25 wage as required by law and subjected them to a hostile work environment in which they were harassed, intimidated, body shamed and forced to live in fear."[br /][br /]They weren't even compensated for public appearances or performing other tasks related to their jobs, which are things Patel says she never experienced, but it was a different time, a different culture and under different management.[br /][br /]"And I was thinking, 'it can't have changed that much because I still participate in some alumni events. It's just kind of unbelievable," Patel said.[br /][br /]For Patel, she went on to be a teacher and still does alumni work with the Texans.[br /][br /][/i][i]Follow Chauncy Glover on [url HREF="https://www.facebook.com/ABC13ChauncyGlover/" TARGET="new" REL="nofollow"]Facebook[/url] and [url HREF="https://twitter.com/ChauncyOnTV" TARGET="new" REL="nofollow"]Twitter[/url].