Equal Pay Act (1963)

• Andrew • Casey• Megan

Gov. Census (Income):

1960's:

• The 1960’s was a time when women were starting to gain their independence from men. There were more females entering into the workforce than ever before. o Which lead to why unequal pay was coming more into the

public eye

• Overtime Americans came to accept the goals of the Sixties feminists:o equal pay for equal worko end to domestic violenceo end limits on women in managerial jobso end to sexual harassmento sharing of responsibility for housework and child rearing.

Background:

• Amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Acto In order to prohibit discrimination based on sex in the payment

by employers equal pay for men and women who have the same job

Background:

• The Act was signed into law on June 10, 1963 by John F. Kennedy o This was part of his New Frontier Program.

The NFP was meant to boost the economy, provide international aid, provide for national defense, and to boost the space program.

Background:

• After signing the Equal Pay Act, John F. Kennedy stated:o "Our economy today depends upon women in the labor force,

one out of three workers are women. Today, there are almost 25 million employed, and their number is rising faster than the number of men in the labor force."

(Remarks upon signing the Equal Pay Act June 10th, 1963)

Equal Pay Act:

The Act made discrimination based on gender, religion, or race illegal in the workforce.

• Made it so job titles were not necessarily the same, but the pay did have to be.o Created a minimum wage, o 40 hours a week plus would create overtime, for all.

Equal Pay Act (continued)

• The Act was approved on June, 10 1963

• The expectation also applied to other jobs: o salesmen, teachers, amusement or recreational

establishment,organized camp, or religious or non-profit educational conference center, farmers, newspapers/press, switchboard operator owned by a private owner, seamen, casual employees such as babysitters and computer systems analyst, computer programmer, software engineer, or other similarly skilled worker.

Declaration of Purpose

(a.) The Congress hereby finds that the existence in industries engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce of wage differentials based on gender

(1) depresses wages and living standards for employees necessary for their health and efficiency;

(2) prevents the maximum utilization of the available labor resources;

Declaration of Purpose (continued)

(3) tends to cause labor disputes, thereby burdening, affecting, and obstructing commerce;

(4) burdens commerce and the free flow of goods in commerce; and

(5) constitutes an unfair method of competition.

(b) It is hereby declared to be the policy of this Act, through exercise by Congress of its power to regulate commerce among the several States and with foreign nations, to correct the conditions above referred to in such industries.

Penalties:

• Penalties include fine and imprisonment as well as right of action, termination of right of action, and attorney fees, and compensation.

Impact on Democracy

• Fair representation of the "people"

• Progression of fair representation:

i. Modern democracy requires equality for citizens

ii. Women provided their concerns and opinions, and their voices were heard

The Reality Behind the EPA

• Simply, states wage discrimination cannot be because of gender

• In 2010, women earned 77 percent of what men earned

• 40% of the wage gap cannot be explained by occupation

• Similar to literacy laws for African American suffrage