Sheffield council women workers hold festive protest against gender pay gap as wide as £11,000

Transcript

00:00 I'm Summer Rise, being an organiser for GMP Union.

00:03 We're outside Sheffield Town Hall today demonstrating for equal care for women workers.

00:08 Right at the beginning, that's where the discrimination is taking place.

00:11 As soon as you're in people care or learning and development,

00:14 your teaching assistants, your points mean less in pay terms.

00:19 So, you know, your care workers, provider service workers, teaching assistants, cleaning, catering.

00:24 Generally, we recognise them as jobs that women fulfil, versus say highways or anything like that,

00:31 that we often see many.

00:33 And I don't think that the men are being overpaid, I think they're getting the right pay.

00:38 The issue is that the women need that pay as well.

00:40 What do we want? Equal pay!

00:42 When do we want it? Now!

00:44 What do we want? Equal pay!

00:46 When do we want it? Now!

00:48 What do we want? Equal pay!

00:51 When do we want it? Now!

00:53 What do we want? Equal pay!

00:55 When do we want it? Now!

00:57 I'm the General Secretary of the GMB Union.

01:00 This is a really important campaign for the union across the UK and Ireland.

01:04 The eyes of the whole union are on the campaign in Sheffield

01:07 because we know Sheffield Council is stealing money, effectively, from low-paid women workers.

01:13 And we're going to do something about it.

01:15 But legislation over equal pay took place for 50 years.

01:18 And here we have a council continuing to break the law, discriminating against women.

01:23 Now let's be clear about it.

01:25 They're cheating women out of money every minute of every hour of every working day.

01:30 This is wage theft and it needs to be sorted.

01:34 What do we want? Equal pay!

01:36 When do we want it? Now!

01:38 Christmas is a memorable time. You spend a lot of time with your family, that's the aim.

01:42 You splurge a little bit more than you would any time in the age you see everybody.

01:45 So for these women that could mean more Christmas presents for their kids,

01:49 no overtime so they could go see their mum and dad,

01:51 maybe a family holiday if they really wanted to,

01:54 even a shop at M&S instead of at Aldi, it could mean anything to them.

01:58 But they don't get that opportunity.

02:01 What do we want? Equal pay!

02:03 When do we want it? Now!