Equal Pay Act of 1963
In 1942, Republican congresswoman Winifred C. Stanley from Buffalo, N.Y. introduced H.R. 5056, Prohibiting Discrimination in Pay on Account of Sex, which did not pass at the time. The issue languished until 10 June 1963, when Congress passed the Equal Pay Act ("EPA" or the "Act") as an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act, to "prohibit discrimination on account of sex in the payment of wages by employers."
Gender pay gap in Australia
Until 1969, legislation allowed employers to pay women a minimum rate of pay that was 25% less than male employees doing the same or similar work. In 1969, the first federal "Equal Pay" case established the principle that where women perform 'equal work' alongside men they should receive equal pay, referred to as "equal pay for equal work". Importantly however equal pay was not applicable "where the work in question is essentially or usually performed by females but is work upon which male employees may also be employed". By 1972 only 18% of women workers, mostly teachers and nurses, received the benefit of the decision.