#TBT: FDR Creates The Minimum Wage And Overtime, Abolishes Child Labor

 

     On June 25th, 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed 121 bills. Among these, and, by far, the most significant, was the Fair Labor Standards Act. This law created the minimum wage, banned child labor, and mandated "time-and-a-half" overtime pay for those who worked over 40 hours a week, among numerous other provisions.

     Still the defining piece of workers' rights legislation a century later, this law helped millions of abused and underpaid workers across the country. If you work in the service industry or the production of goods, you have almost certainly seen the posters for this law at your place of employment.