The Pros And Cons Of The FLSA

Facts: The Child Labor Act of 1916, prohibited shipment of goods in interstate commerce factories that employed children; under the age of fourteen. Roland Dagenhart and his two minor sons worked at the mill in Charlotte, North Carolina. Dagenhart brought an injunction against the Act, claiming that it was not a regulation of interstate and that the law was unconstitutional. . (The Oyez Project)

In 1936 by President Roosevelt who signed the Fair Labor Standard Act(FLSA) making a federal minimum wage of .25 cents an hour (equivalent to $4.18 today)(Grossman) in order to maintain a “minimum standard of living necessary for health, efficiency and general well-being, without substantially curtailing employment”. This wage only affected about 20% of the entire labor force. The Fair labor Standards act was not always looked at being the best way to go, when it was enacted just like in today 's society it was fought against to raise the minimum wage. Many corporations were arguing against the creation of the

For centuries, there has been a common relationship between employers and employees. Over the course of that time, the workplace and the jobs within it have evolved as new jobs were created, ways to execute tasks became more advanced and laws were enacted to put into place fair employment for those in the workforce. In 1938, congress would pass and President Roosevelt would sign the Wages and Hours Bill, more commonly known as the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA). This federal statute introduced a 44 hour, seven day work week, established the national minimum wage, guaranteed overtime pay in specific types of jobs at a rate of “time and a half”, and it defines oppressive child labor, which prohibits most employment of minors. The FLSA applies to those employees engaged in interstate commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, unless the employer can claim an exemption from coverage.

The Fair Labor Standards Act was first introduced and passed on June 25, 1938 and became effective on October 24, 1938 within that bill minimum wage was first introduced (Grossman). The bill itself was an issue because the supreme court kept turning down the bill but after countless attempts, the bill was passed a year later. President Franklin D. Roosevelt introduced that bill in hopes for fair pay as he states “all our able-bodied working men and women a fair day's pay for a fair day's work” (Roosevelt). President Roosevelt basically wanted to end the injustice and inequality many workers faced when receiving payment. Minimum wage has been and is currently an issue because of the augmentation on the cost of living and low income many workers

In 1833, the Factory Act of 1833 was passed to improve the working conditions for children who labored in factories. A source reveals, “Young children were working very long hours in workplaces where conditions were often terrible,” (Document 10). As this came to the government’s attention, the act was produced by them in an attempt to lessen the abuse of working children, and to treat them more like children. First, the Factory Act limited the hours children could work in factories. The act states, “Children of 9-13 years to work no more than nine hours a day; children of 13-18 years to work no more than 12 hours a day,” (Document 10). Children were also not allowed to work at night. By having working hours reduced, children were able to fit in time to play, sleep, and get an education. It also reduced fatigue, as the children weren’t on their feet as long, and they got in more time to sleep. Secondly, within the act, there was a rule limiting the age children must be to work in factories. No children under the age of nine were allowed to work in the factories,” (Document 10). Although this decreased the amount of money coming in for each family, it allowed the children to get educations, have more free time, and help their

What is the Fair Labor Standards Act? The Fair Labor Standards Act is better known as the FLSA. The FLSA established a maximum hour work week, a minimum wage pay, overtime pay, and child labor laws. Many people are aware of the basic FLSA parts but big changes have come.

The state according the 2014 census estimates is one of the largest in the United States with 26.9 million people, of which 20.6 million (working population) are 16 years and over. As a general rule, the Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA) sets 14 years of age as the minimum age for employment, and limits the number of hours worked by minors under the age of 16.

By 1938 the Fair Labor Standard Act was probably one of the strongest change makers that were produced due to the fire – by establishing minimum wage, overtime pay, record keeping and youth employment standards affecting full time and part-time workers in the separate region and in federal, state and local governments. FLSA also set wages at the same rate and paid women for overtime as well prevented child labor until the age of 16 and older with limited working hours and jobs that children can work.

child labor laws during the Progressive Era and some that still stay today; including the first child labor law know as the Keating-Owen bill of 1916 as stated by Our Documents. “The act banned the sale of products from any factory, shop, or cannery that employed children under the age of 14, from any mine that employed children under the age of 16, and from any facility that had children under the age of 16 work at night or for more than 8 hours during the day” (Our Documents). There was also many other laws like the child labor tax law, the 1999 Child Labor Deterrence Act, the 1938 law that allows children to work in agriculture legally, the Keating-Owen Bill and in 1938 the Fair Labor Standards Act law that placed limits on many forms of child labor signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as stated by Reid Maki from Stop Child Labor. In addition, many of the legislations were unconstitutional by the supreme court, but other legislations like the Fair Labor Standards Act which regulates child labor is still in use today as stated by

c. Roosevelt created the Fair Labor Standards Act to establish better working conditions. The Fair Labor Standards Act established a minimum wage of forty cents, and a forty hour work week (chart 1, Line 17).

In 1938, after many years of debate and firm opposition from the supreme court, the United States enacted the Fair Labor Standards Act, which set a 25 cent minimum wage, and a 40 hour work week for many professions, but nowadays, the minimum wage has fallen well behind the cost of living and fallen behind inflation. Forcing states to have minimum wages based on their cost of living, would put billions more dollars into the economy and significantly boost the salary of millions of people.

On June 25, 1938 President Franklin Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Fair Labor Standards Act is a law made to establish a federal minimum wage, overtime pay, and youth employment standards. Since 1938 the federal minimum wage has been raised 22 times. States are allowed to set their own individual minimum wage laws, and under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are required to abide by state wage laws. According to The Negative Effects of Minimum Wage Laws “Currently forty-five states and the District of Columbia have individually set their own minimum wage, of which eighteen are higher than $7.25 an hour. Only five

Under that Fair Labor Standards Act the United States federal minimum wage was created and implemented. Information obtained from the United States Department of Labor website shows

The Fair Labor Standards Act, also known as FLSA, was created because at the time industries were paying workers unfair wages for the hours they worked. After the FLSA was signed, it set a standard minimum wage at twenty five cents an hour. It also set the maximum amount of hours people can work at a job to forty-four hours a week, and finally it got rid of oppressive child labor, (Jonathan Grossman). Today we still have a minimum wage, but it varies across the states. The forty-four hour workweek was replaced with a forty hour workweek instead.

Criminal actions, or prosecutions, by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) can be brought against you if you are deemed to be in “willful” violation of the FLSA. Willful violation is defined as deliberate, voluntary and intentional. These types of actions by the DOJ can be brought in addition to civil actions brought by the Secretary of Labor. The criminal penalties under the FLSA are a fine up to $10,000 for the first conviction and a fine of up to $10,000, imprisonment or both after the first conviction.