Wage Discrimination

The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was influential in creating a progressive environment which would contribute to creating a fairer world for all. The Act was instrumental in changing the thought process of Americans at the time, and is responsible for supporting equal pay in the workplace. Gender equality pay is an issue people have been fighting over for years, but when the Equal Pay Act of 1963 passed, it certainly aided in the fight for equality for all. (Salem Press Encyclopedia)

According to statistics, there are disparities with pay in the workplace. Men are paid more in wages, comprehensive packages, and benefits than women who performed the same job responsibilities and roles in the workplace. The big question is why are women being unvalued? Since, this is a common practice in the workplace, is this fair to both genders and is this the most favorable outcome for the greatest number affected by this business practice? The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was passed to eliminate this type of discrimination based on sex with paying wages to employees, in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which pays, wages to employees of the opposite sex for equal work on jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions.

Women’s Civil Rights has always been an issue around the world. During World War II, women began working while the men were away at war. Once the men came back, the pay wage began between men and women. According to researchers, Beth Rowen and Borgna Brunner, between 1950 and 1960, women who had worked full-time jobs only earned around 60 cents to every dollar that their male counterparts earned. It was not until June 10, 1963 that the Equal Pay Act was passed by President Kennedy making it illegal for employers to pay women less than men in the same job title. In order to further progress of pay equity, Rosa Cho from Re:Gender.org, also found that President Kennedy proposed a Civil Rights Act to prohibit

Gender equality is something that has been a problem through the ages. Susan B. Anthony and many others fought for the right to vote which was granted in 1920. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law stating that no employer can discriminate based on gender. The American Association of University Women published a graph on Women’s Median Annual Earnings as a Percentage of Men’s Median Annual Earnings for Full-time, Year-round Workers, 1974-2014 and it shows that in 1974, women were paid 59% of what men were paid. The graph shows the improvements over the years and that in 2014, women were paid 79% of what men were paid. The gap has not budged since 2014. The gender pay gap has improved over the years, but it will not close until new legislation passes.

The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is in place to make it so men and women are paid the same if they are performing the same jobs. It gives equality in the workplace between men and women.

The Equal Pay Act set in the United States in 1963 is a labor law removes the wage inequality between men and women. This was a law that was specifically designed so that everyone is required to be paid the same amount. If a man and a woman are both working the same job title in the same work place there should not be any difference in the amount of pay received. The creation of this law was much more important than many people realized, because women were completing the same jobs but offered less money because of their gender and not quality of their work.The sole purpose of the equal pay is give women the same ability to make a living as a male, which closes the gender pay gap and keeps women for being paid 78 cents on a dollar. This pay act helps hold the employer accountable for making sure no one is not being compensated for things in their job description. In this paper I will speaking about The EEOC Sues Checkers and the Phillips V. Marietta Corp which are two specific cases that shows how people have been discriminated against because of their gender, this highlights the importance of The Equal Pay Act and what it actually stands for.

1971 - Reed v. Reed. Key U. S. Supreme Court sex discrimination case. The case struck

One problem that Americans are facing is the inequality between men and women, whether it is in everyday life or in a professional atmosphere. One step that has been taken toward equality was introduced with the Equal Pay Act of 1963, signed by President John F. Kennedy. This law was the first affecting the amount of job opportunities available for women and allowing them to work in traditionally male dominated fields. On the outside, this would sound like a solution where nothing could possibly go wrong, but it is not.

Equal Pay Act of 1963 During his years in presidency, John F. Kennedy came forward and signed the initial Equal Pay act of 1963 on June 10, 1963 that was ratified by the House of Representatives and Congress. The law forbids any discrimination between both genders, and valued unbiased pay among both male and female employees working in the same job department. In fact, throughout the beginning of the 1900’s not many women had the opportunity to possess a hard-working, paying job of their own for the majority of women were homemakers. Although, in the years of WWI employment deficiency brought in an abundant amount of female workers to come into the place of work. Even though women had a smaller salary compared to the men, they were still wary over the idea that the females would take over all of their jobs.

Despite our country’s love of freedom, throughout its history, the United States has oppressed minorities. If someone isn’t a middle-aged Caucasian male, they automatically have to work harder just to receive the same opportunities and compensation. Various laws have been enacted to protect minorities from exploitation, including the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which was enacted to protect women from unfair wages.

The Equal Pay Act 1970 (1984)- says that women must be paid the same as men when they are doing the same job.

In 1970, the Equal Pay Act was introduced. It requires employers to provide equal pay for equal work. The Sex Discrimination Act enforces fair recruitment policies. The European Equal Pay Directive and the Equal Treatment Directive are also in force.

With the same exemption as Merit System, Seniority Plans are also exempt which means that a company that ties pay notes to seniority can pay a man more if he has been with the company longer than the female co-worker. In conclusion the EPA indicates that any other factor other than sex may be used to justify different pay rates (Gomez-Mejia, Luis R.). Industries of commerce and productions of goods for commerce have depressed wages and standards of living based on sex which resulted in the declaration of purpose. The EPA is necessary for every one’s health and efficiency. The purpose of declaration is that discrimination of sex in the work force prevents the most efficient level of labor resources, causes problems with in the labor force, prevents and burdens commerce and symbolizes an unfair competition between individuals. This is one of the reasons why the EPA is created to solve these complications. If employers use sex discrimination in the work force they will face penalties. Some penalties are fines and imprisonment, employers are liable for damages done to the employee, employer must pay wages and compensation that was held from the employee and the employer must provide savings provisions (“The Equal Pay Act of 1963”). Preventing sex pay discrimination is just one way that Equal Employment Opportunities Commission is trying to make everyone equal.

Despite the fact that the Equal Pay Act has been law since 1963, many problems inevitably arise in the administration of equal pay laws (Fisher). It has been estimated that at this current slow rate of progression in closing the gender pay gap it will be 2068 by the time men and women’s wages are equalized. It is clear that the business case, as well as the legislative case, has a significant role to play (Commission Policy Report).

The general principal behind this act is to ensure employees welfare and quality of life is safeguarded. Employees should therefore welcome and support any effort by the organization to adhere to its recommendation. Furthermore, adhering to this law ensures compensation discrimination is avoided. This is especially true considering FLSA was amended by the Equal Pay Act (EPA) in 1963. As a result, employers are restricted from paying unequal salary based on ones gender. Employees should be compensated equally provided they perform similar jobs, encompassing similar responsibilities and under same conditions (Ross, 2011).