Equal Pay Act

The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is part of the Fair Labor Standards Act, at 29 U.S.C. 206(d). It bars employers from paying employees of one sex less than employees of the opposite sex in the same establishment for equal work on jobs requiring equal skill, effort, and responsibility, performed under similar working conditions. The jobs need to be substantially equal, not identical, and job content matters more than job titles. It covers all forms of pay, including salary, overtime, bonuses, and benefits.

Employers can defend a pay gap only by showing it results from a seniority system, a merit system, a system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production, or another factor other than sex. Employers cannot fix a violation by lowering anyone's pay.

The deadlines differ from other discrimination laws. The EEOC explains that under the Equal Pay Act, workers can go directly to court without filing an EEOC charge, and must do so within two years of the unlawful pay practice, or three years if the violation was willful. Remedies can include back pay and an equal amount as liquidated damages, plus attorneys' fees. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act also prohibits sex-based pay discrimination, with a charge-filing process and different damages rules, and many lawsuits bring both claims.

Because the Equal Pay Act follows FLSA procedures, group cases proceed as "collective actions," where each worker must opt in. Keep pay stubs, offer letters, job descriptions, and anything showing what coworkers were paid. See our guides on how to sue a company and class action versus individual lawsuit, plus the retaliation entry.