Muller v. Oregon
Muller v. Oregon, 208 U.S. 412 (1908), properly Curt Muller, Plaintiff in Error v. State of Oregon, was a landmark decision in United States Supreme Court history, as it relates to both sex discrimination and minimum wage laws.
Background
When Muller was decided, in 1908, there was no federal minimum wage law; such an absence permitted then-common practices like 14-year-old boys working in coal mines 12 hours per day, 7 days per week.
The case references Lochner v. New York, 198 U.S. 45 (1905), another important case concerning hours of the workday. In Lochner, the Court overturned a New York law that made it a criminal offense for bakers to work more than 10 hours per day and/or 60 hours per week, explaining that the benefits of workplace regulation should give way to "freedom of contract" and "economic due process." However, Lochner was eventually overruled by West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish, 300 U.S. 379 (1937).
The Case
Argued: January 15, 1908.
The Decision
The opinion of the Court was delivered by Justice David Josiah Brewer on February 24, 1908.
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