91�ȱ�

“We intend to make equal pay for equal work a reality.”

In December 1975, The Equal Pay Act (1970) came into force in the UK. Seven years earlier, a determined group of women laid the foundations for this landmark moment.

In 1968, at the Ford factory in Dagenham, 187 female sewing machinists went on strike. They refused to work because they were being paid 15% less than their male colleagues, despite carrying out the same tasks.

In addition to this, they wanted to be recognised as skilled labourers after passing a test to join the factory. They were graded as 'B' workers but felt they should be 'C' graded.

The strike brought the factory to a halt, as no one else knew how to make leather seat covers for cars. Some male employees who were affected by the action, blamed the female machinists, remarking that they were only earning ‘pin money’. This claim was rejected by the women who insisted that their wages were needed for essential living expenses.

The strike led to publicity and would result in equal pay legislation being introduced two years later.

The Labour Employment Minister Barbara Castle, a supporter of the female factory workers in Dagenham, helped them to negotiate a settlement. She also promised to deliver legislation, stating that she wanted "to make equal pay for equal work a reality".

In 1970, Castle introduced the Equal Pay Bill to the House of Commons.

The Bill received Royal Assent on 29 May. This was a major moment in the fight for equal pay and it led to the introduction of the Equal Pay Act in 1975.

91�ȱ� News reported as the law came into force alongside the Sex Discrimination Act.

The Equal Pay Act was the first piece of UK legislation which honoured the right to pay equality between women and men. It was also the last piece of written into the statute book before Labour's defeat at the 1970 election.

However, another nine years would pass before 1984, when the Ford Dagenham women would receive equal pay and earn the same grade as their male colleagues.

Ultimately, the Act didn’t fully resolve issues of equal pay. However it was a significant milestone along the lengthy road to equal treatment of men and women which continues today.

International Equal Pay Day is celebrated on 18 September.