A Research On The American Protective Policies For Women Workers (1945-1975)

After the Second World War,with the change of women's role in American society,more and more women went out of their families and entered the labor market.In order to protect the rights and health of women workers,the U.S.federal and state governments issued a series of policies aiming at protecting women workers respectively.This thesis describes the protective policies for women workers of the federal and state governments after the Second World War.It also analyzes the challenges faced by protective policies for women workers after the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the adjustment of such policies.In addition to the introduction and conclusion,the main body of this thesis consists of three parts:In the first part,analyzed the status of women workers in the American labor market and the society after the Second World War,and explored the difficulties faced by them during this period.On the one hand,the number of women workers in the United States has steadily increased during this period,and there has also been a breakthrough in the types of occupation they employed.On the other hand,although the protection of women workers is still indispensable,due to the return of men after the war,protective policies have become obstacles to women's employment.Therefore,the protective policies for women workers in this period faced with new challenges.The protective policies for women workers by the federal and state governments in the 1950 s and 1960 s is introduced in the second part.At the state level,the state complemented and improved the protective policies for women workers.According to the relevant documents of the U.S Department of Labor,the author combed several important policies during this period,including working hours,lifting heavy objects,seats,pregnancy protection and occupational restrictions and so on.At the federal level,during this period,in order to solve women's problems,the federal government of the United States established the Presidential Commission on Women's Status,in which there is a department specialized in the protection of women workers.In 1963,the Commission handed out a questionnaire to each state.According to the feedback of the questionnaire,the author sorted out the views on protective labor legislation for women of respondents,and the recommendations about the implementation of the policies provided by the Commission.In the third part,the United States enacted the Civil Rights Act in 1964.Chapter VII prohibits employment discrimination based on gender.Undoubtedly,there is conflict between the protective policies for women workers and Chapter VII,and has caused dissatisfaction among employers and female workers.In this section,the author analyzes the paradox first,and introduces four specific cases triggered by this contradiction,and combs the adjustment of the protective policies for women workers made by the federal and state governments.