Editing Class discrimination (section)

== Legislation ==
There are legislative measures that aim to prevent discrimination and ensure equal opportunities for all individuals, regardless of class background.<ref name=":0">https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/FairLaborStandAct.pdf</ref> Several laws protect individuals from discrimination based on race, gender, religion, and national origin, indirectly addressing class disparities.<ref name=":0" />

Policies such as the [[Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938]] (FLSA), is a U.S. federal law that establishes labor standards for employees, primarily focusing on minimum wage, overtime pay, child labor, and recordkeeping.<ref name=":0" /> The FLSA was originally designed as a tool to reduce class inequality.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Andrias |first=Kate |title=An American Approach to Social Democracy: The Forgotten Promise of the Fair Labor Standards Act |url=https://www.yalelawjournal.org/article/an-american-approach-to-social-democracy |access-date=2025-03-01 |website=www.yalelawjournal.org}}</ref> Employers are set to pay a minimum wage, which has changed over time. With a recent increase from $5.85 to $7.25 per hours in stages. However, employees working more than 40 hours per week must receive overtime pay at 1.5 times their regular pay rate.<ref name=":0" />

The [[Equal Pay Act of 1963]] (EPA) aimed to eliminate gender-based disparities by mandating equal pay for equal work.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Swift |first=Jayne |date=2023-06-20 |title=Equal Pay and Substantive Economic Citizenship |url=https://genderpolicyreport.umn.edu/equal-pay-and-substantive-economic-citizenship/?utm_source=chatgpt.com |access-date=2025-03-01 |website=Gender Policy Report |language=en-US}}</ref> However, the EPA did not include provisions for a living wage or broader labor protections, leaving many workers earning wages insufficient to meet basic living standards.<ref name=":1" />

The [[European Convention on Human Rights]], also includes protections against discrimination, including on the basis of social class.<ref name=":2" /> Specifically, Article 14 of the Convention prohibits discrimination on a variety of grounds, including "social origin," which is interpreted to encompass class background.<ref name=":2">[https://www.echr.coe.int/documents/convention_eng.pdf European Convention on Human Rights as amended by Protocols Nos. 11, 14 and 15, supplemented by Protocols Nos. 1, 4, 6, 7, 12, 13 and 16]</ref>

The [[Earned income tax credit|Earned Income Tax Credit]] is described as a program for families of the working poor earning below a specified income threshold.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal |last=De Hon |first=Jacqueline |date=2002 |title=Identifying Links-of-Discrimination Related to Race, Gender, and Class |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/41675036 |journal=Race, Gender & Class |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=139–158 |issn=1082-8354}}</ref> An article, citing a 2000 IRS source related to earned income, reports that in 1997, this program lost $7.8 billion due to factors identified as "fraud and errors".<ref name=":5" /> It further states that these funds, which could have benefited the working poor, were consequently unavailable to them due to mismanagement and theft.<ref name=":5" />