Gender Equality Laws

Former California Senator Omer Rains spent a significant part of his legislative career promoting policies and authoring legislation to end discrimination against minorities, especially women. The author of California's passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), Rains followed by authoring 68 bills instrumental in conforming the California codes to truly reflect the policies of the Equal Rights Amendment. The President of the National Women's Political Caucus stated that "Senator Omer Rains has done more to advance the cause of women's rights and equality under the law than any Legislator in California history."

While the ERA has yet to be adopted by the requisite number of states necessary to become part of the U.S. Constitution, many other acts were passed during the civil rights era to increase gender equality. Some of the most important legislative wins of that era include the following:

Equal Credit Opportunity Act: Passed in 1974, the ECOA ended the practice of denying women credit or loans without a male co-signer. The act also prohibits lender discrimination based on race, age, or income sources.

Equal Pay Act: As more women entered the workforce after World War II, employers deliberately offered them lower wages when they worked in the same positions as men. In 1963, President Kennedy updated the Fair Labor Standards Act to end this practice.

Pregnancy Discrimination Act: After this law was passed in 1978, employers have been barred from discriminating against pregnant women or women of child-bearing age in any aspect of employment. The act also allows women to use disability leave to take time off due to a pregnancy-related condition.