Equal pay in labour party manifesto
Equal pay first appeared as a party commitment in the 1964 Labour Party Manifesto
1968 – Barbara Castle, Ford Dagenham and The Donovan Report
1968 saw an increase in strike action, including the still famous Ford Dagenham dispute, which was ended in part...
1970 – Equal Pay Act is passed, strikes in Leeds and Merthyr Tydfil
The events of 1970 are widely regarded as a key juncture in the move towards women’s equality in the...
UK adopts Equal Remuneration Convention 100 of ILO
Equal Remuneration Convention of the Independent Labour Organisation.
1975 Equal Pay and Equal Value
1975 was a turning point for workplace equalities legislation, with the Equal Pay Act coming into force, and the...
Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and the creation of the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC)
The Sex Discrimination Act was enacted in 1975
1976 – Trico and Grunwick disputes
The 21-week-long strike at the Trico-Folberth windscreen wiper factory in 1976 was Britain’s longest equal pay strike.
1976 Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order and creation of the EOCNI
An Order in Council (approved by the UK Parliament) prohibited sex discrimination in Northern Ireland in 1976, and it...
Case 61/81: Commission of the European Communities v United Kingdom – Equal pay for men and women
UK government infringement of Equal Pay Directive
Equal Pay (Amendment) Regulations 1983
UK government introduces the Equal Pay (Amendment) Regulations
Sex Equality Bill fails first reading
A private member's bill (introduced by Jo Richardson MP) to resolve the ‘grey areas’ in both the Sex Discrimination...
1984 Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value – Julie Hayward and the Belfast Women Cleaners
Two important test cases regarding equal pay for work of equal value began their long journey through the courts...
European Women’s Lobby founded
The European Women's Lobby (EWL) was founded in 1990, with funding and support from the European Commission.
Pamela Enderby v. Frenchay Health Authority
European Court of Justice makes an important ruling in equal pay for work of equal value case in 1993
1997 Single Status Agreement
A national collective agreement on the pay and conditions of service for local government service employees
1999 EOC launch of the Valuing Women campaign on equal pay
Equal Opportunities Commission launches the Valuing Women campaign.
Report of the Independent Review of Anti-Discrimination Legislation
A key document that made wide-ranging recommendations for reform of UK equalities legislation was published in 2000.
2001 Kingsmill Report on Women’s Employment and Pay
Independant report by Denise Kingsmill recommends gender pay and recruitment audits
2003 Stefan Cross
Since 2003 Stefan Cross KC has taken many thousands of ’no-win-no-fee’ cases to employment tribunal against local authorities.
2004 Agenda for Change
Agenda for Change is the pay and grading collective agreement covering the majority of NHS staff.
Discrimination Law Review set up
The Discrimination Law Review exmained how equality law might be reformed.
2005 Gate Gourmet Dispute
The Gate Gourmet strike at Heathrow highlights the impact of outsourcing on the terms and conditions of women workers...
Equality Act 2006 and Establishment of the EHRC
In 2006 the EHRC was created as one single body to cover all areas of discrimination.
2006 Glasgow City Council workforce pay and benefits review
Glasgow City Council's 'Workforce Pay and Benefits Review' led to a significant number of equal pay claims
2011 Public Sector Equality Duties – England and Wales
The Equality Act 2010 provided for public sector equality duties, with powers devolved to Welsh and Scottish nations
2017 Gender Pay Gap Reporting Regulations
From 2017 private sector organisations employing 250 or more were required to report on the gender pay gap
2017 Court of Sessions rules Glasgow City Council WPBR discriminatory
Ruling that Glasgow job evaluation scheme did not meet the requirements of the Equal Pay Act
2018 Glasgow City Council workers’ strike
In October 2018 more than 8,000 Glasgow City Council workers took 48 hours of industrial action over equal pay...
