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Batman Starred In A Video About The Gender Pay Gap In The 1970s And It's Very Weird

Batman Starred In A Video About The Gender Pay Gap In The 1970s And It's Very Weird

The recently unearthed short was used to highlight the US Equal Pay Act

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

A video of Batman from the 1970s has been unearthed, advertising the Equal Pay Act in the US, and it's definitely the most surreal thing you're going to see today.

The clip, featuring Batman, Robin and Batgirl was made by the US Department of Labour and shows Batman and Robin getting their arses saved by Batgirl - but not before she reminds them of the equal pay laws.

"I've worked for you a long time and I'm paid less than Robin," she exclaims as Robin rolls his eyes.

"Same job, same employer means equal pay for men and women."

Batman then has the audacity to say that it's 'no time for jokes' before she firmly reminds him that it's not a joke - it's the law. "Holy Act of Congress!"

If anything I reckon Batgirl deserves to be paid more than Robin, to be honest. Although I'm unclear on this whole 'salaried vigilante' business - can we get a bit more info on that, please?

The Equal Pay Act was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy, aimed at sorting out the disparity in salaries between men and women.

Media Drum

But despite the video being 40-odd years old, the same arguments are still ongoing - not just in the US, but over here in the UK too.

For instance, the BBC was recently thrust into the spotlight when its biggest stars' salaries were made public in July last year. The figures showed that female presenters - including Clare Balding, Fiona Bruce and Alex Jones - were paid less than their male counterparts. It was also revealed that over two thirds of the Beeb's highest paid stars - 12 out of 14 - were male.

via GIPHY

Commenting on the situation at the time, BBC Director General, Tony Hall said: "We've made progress but we recognise there is more to do and we are pushing further and faster than any other broadcaster."

The Young Women's Trust analysed data from a survey of hours and earnings from 2017 and found that collectively, the 15 million working women in the UK are losing out on £138 billion ($195bn) a year, with the gap widening even further when part-time work is taken into account. So I think we can see why Batgirl was so pissed off.

Featured Image Credit: Media Drum

Topics: TV and Film, Weird, Batman