The Adamson Act created the first federal eight-hour day for railroad workers in 1916.
The statute applied to employees of interstate railroads and established an eight-hour standard day for calculating pay. It was enacted during a dispute between railroad companies and the four major brotherhoods representing train operating crews. Congress passed it to avert a nationwide strike threatened for September 1916.
The law also provided that the existing daily pay would continue for the new eight-hour day, with additional pay for time beyond eight hours. The Supreme Court upheld the act in Wilson v. New, rejecting the argument that Congress had exceeded its constitutional authority.
The Adamson Act is often confused with the later Fair Labor Standards Act. The 1916 measure focused on interstate railroad employees, while the 1938 act created broader federal minimum-wage, overtime, and child-labor rules.