Secrecy Over Pay
The Telegraph reports that the star of the stage version of Made in Dagenham, Gemma Atherton, joined an equal pay protest outside the Westminster Parliament the other day.
But I had to laugh at the various Labour MPS queuing up to declare their support for brining in legislation to force employers with more than 250 staff to publish information showing the difference between male and female pay.
Because if the Labour Party us such a great supporter of open and transparent pay arrangements then, why has it been so difficult to get this kind of pay information out of Labour-run North Lanarkshire and South Lanarkshire Councils, for example?
In South Lanarkshire Council, as regular readers know, the issue went all the way to the UK Supreme Court before the Council finally admitted defeat.
Maybe I'll write to the new Scottish Labour leader, Jim Murphy, to see what he thinks of this behaviour because if you ask me, it can only give the Labour Party a bad name.
Gemma Arterton joins veteran Dagenham protesters for equal pay campaign
Former Bond girl starring in Made In Dagenham says even Hollywood 'lagging behind' in equal pay, citing lower earnings of American Hustle star Jennifer Lawrence
Gemma Arterton with one of the original Dagenham women strikers, Vera Sime, outside Parliament Photo: PA/Yui Mok
By Agency
Gemma Arterton, the Made In Dagenham stage star, said "any man worth their soul" should be supporting an equal pay campaign outside Parliament.
The former Bond girl is starring in the West End musical adaptation of the story of the female workers at Ford's Dagenham plant, who went on strike over equal pay in 1968.
She joined the original Dagenham workers and politicians at a rally timed to coincide with a Labour bid to force big firms to publish the difference in pay between male and female employees.
She said industry is behind the times, in reference to leaks from Sony Pictures that revealed stars Jennifer Lawrence and Amy McAdams were paid less than their male co-stars in American Hustle.
The actor said: "Yeah, it is lagging behind the times. I think there's something interesting in that we don't like to talk about what we earn because it's not the done thing.
"But actually we should because then we can say, 'hang on a minute - that's not right', and challenge it. That's part of the reason equal pay is not in place, because we are shy to speak up. That's why, if we can anonymously get companies to publish that, we will be able to see for ourselves."
Veterans of the Dagenham protest said they were not surprised that women are still not getting equal pay, "because men are too powerful". They added that more women should be in Parliament and more women like former Labour politician Barbara Castle were needed.
Labour claims women earn £210,000 less over a lifetime than men. The party's Equal Pay (Transparency) Bill would bring into effect measures in the 2010 Equality Act that were not implemented by the coalition Government and would require employers with more than 250 staff to publish information showing the difference between male and female pay.
Backbencher Sarah Champion will propose new legislation under the 10-minute rule, although without Government support there is little chance of it becoming law due to a lack of parliamentary time.
Labour's analysis of the Office for National Statistics' annual survey of hours and earnings showed that over a career, from the age of 22 to 64, a woman earned an average of £209,976 less.
Gloria De Piero, the shadow women's minister, said: "We'd like all companies to publish the pay gap. Some companies do it already but we want all big companies to do it."
Ms De Piero added if the vote did not go through a Labour government would make it happen.
Arterton she said she was "optimistic" that a Parliament dominated by men would pass the motion, but she added: "We shall see won't we? I'm optimistic. If you have a woman in your life and you believe in women and you respect them you should vote for it.
"However, my local MP was not kind of supportive of the whole process and she's a woman, so there we go."
The actor also said: "It's something I'm deeply passionate about. It's not just about pay, it's about being treated with respect and it's about equality.
"If you have a woman in your life in any way - whether it be mother, daughter, sister - you should support this campaign because if your wife is earning less, if your daughter is going to go into a workplace where she's going to be treated less than her male counterparts, it should interest you. So of course any man worth their soul should be supporting this campaign."
Labour MP Emily Thornberry was also at the rally and said she believed the Bill would be passed. She added: "But there are many other stages it has to go through before it becomes law and the Tories are likely to kill it off because there are large businesses that don't want to publish their pay levels."
