This Day In Market History: Supreme Court Rules Women Must Get Equal Pensions

Each day, Benzinga takes a look back at a notable market-related moment that occurred on this date.

What Happened?: On this day in 1983, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it is unconstitutional for companies to pay women lower pensions than men.

Where The Market Was: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the day at 1,220.65 and the S&P 500 traded at 168.48.

What Else Was Going On In The World? In 1983, Nintendo NTDOY debuted the arcade game Mario Bros.

Microsoft Corporation MSFT launched Microsoft Word, the most successful word processing application in history. The average price of a new house was $82,600.

Victory For Women’s Workplace Rights: Prior to the Supreme Court ruling, companies had argued women live longer than men on average, and therefore shouldn't be entitled to as much pension as men. Justice Thurgood Marshall cited Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in the ruling and said companies must treat employees as individuals rather than members of a group based on sex.

Unfortunately for retired women at the time, the Supreme Court disagreed with a lower court’s ruling that companies would be retroactively on the hook for previous payments. The 1983 ruling was a landmark case in women’s workplace rights, but female employees are still fighting for equal pay in the workplace to this day.

Posted In: NewsEducationLegalMarketsGeneralthis day in market history
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