Equal Pay Act of 1963
This Act was passed as an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. It prohibits employment discrimination in pay, employee benefits and pensions based on the employee's gender. Regardless of whether male or female, employees must be paid equally for equal work when terms and conditions of employment are the same.
A violation of the Equal Pay Act may occur where a higher wage is paid to a person who performs the same job before, after or at the same time as an employee of the opposite sex. "Wages" include salaries, wage rates, straight time pay, overtime pay, commissions, expense accounts, bonuses, premium pay and fringe benefits.
The EEOC enforces this Act, but unlike Title VII, complaints regarding discrimination under the Equal Pay Act do NOT have to be filed with the EEOC or a state agency before the case can be filed in court. A lawsuit must be filed within two years (three years for willful violations) of the discriminatory act.