The Equal Pay Act of 1963 made it illegal to pay men and women different wages for the same work in the US. It was the first US law to address gender discrimination and was a catalyst for similar legislation around the world. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 further established gender equality in the workplace.
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act of the United States, which is the law governing hiring, pay and working conditions for employees in the country. This act made it illegal to pay men and women different wages for the same work. After the US Congress passed the bill, President John F. Kennedy signed it into law on June 10, 1963. It went into effect on June 11, 1964 and became the first US law to address discrimination based on gender.
Until the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963, it was common in the United States for women to be paid significantly less than men to do the same job. In the 1950s, US women earned just 59 cents for every dollar their male counterparts earned. The law covers not only wages, but also overtime, benefits and other forms of compensation. The provisions of the law concern private and public employees.
Throughout the 1950s, several bills were introduced in the United States Congress calling for equal pay for women. On February 14, 1963, Labor Secretary Willard Wirtz introduced a bill. With the bill, Wirtz sent a letter recommending that Congress pass a law that would guarantee equal pay for gender.
The Presidential Commission on the Status of Women also helped ensure the success of the act. Appointed by Kennedy in 1961, the commission’s formation was in response to efforts to try to pass the Equal Rights Amendment and was led by former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The commission released its report on the status of women in 1963 and passed the Equal Pay Act of 1963.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 further established gender equality in the workplace. This law made it illegal to hire or fire an employee based on gender. The protections of the Equal Pay Act 1963 were not extended to professional women until 1972, with the exclusion of professional and administrative positions in the original legislation.
A case brought under the act must establish two facts. The employee must demonstrate that men and women are paid differently based on gender. The worker must also prove that the working and working conditions are the same.
The act was a catalyst for similar legislation in other parts of the world. The Equal Pay Act 1970 was subsequently passed by the British Parliament. France and New Zealand passed similar legislation in 1972, as did Ireland in 1974.
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