jan 1, 1938 - Fair Labor Standards Act

Description:

New Deal legislation passed in 1938 that outlawed child labor, standardized the forty-hour workweek, mandated overtime pay, and established a federal minimum wage.

In the midst of boosting WPA spending, Congress achieved a final legislative victory for the New Deal. In 1938, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act, which outlawed child labor, standardized the forty-hour workweek, mandated overtime pay, and established a federal minimum wage. FDR considered this labor law nearly as important as the Social Security Act because of its implications for how Americans worked and what they earned. It would be the last major legislative achievement of the New Deal era.

A reformer rather than a revolutionary, Roosevelt had preserved capitalism and liberal individualism — even as he transformed them in significant ways. But the president stopped well short of more radical measures, such as the seizure of private property, that some world leaders considered (see “America in the World”). By 1938, opponents of the New Deal had reclaimed a measure of power in Congress and checked further reform. Throughout Roosevelt’s second term, a conservative coalition of southern Democrats, rural Republicans, and industrial interests in both parties worked to block or impede social legislation. The era of change was over.

Added to timeline:

Date: