It turns out that something far more profound than my birth occurred in 1968.
My wife and I recently viewed a film called, Made in Dagenham.
The film tells the story about 187 female machinists who went on a
three week strike at the Ford factory in Dagenham, England. Initially
the women were outraged that they had been classified under a wage
review as 'unskilled', and became more indignant when they became
acutely aware of the difference in classification and wages between
themselves and men doing exactly the same work.
What I found fascinating about the film and my subsequent research was
that the women, led by Eileen Pullan were not skilled negotiators. They
had to defend their actions within the union movement itself (largely
run by men) the factory (which employed nearly 40,000 men) and their
community. Their strike quickly shut down the entire Dagenham operation
'laying off' thousands and thousands of workers.
They stuck to their principles because the behaviour of management,
while generally accepted at the time, was just plain wrong. The same
level of work should receive the same level of pay irrespective of
gender.
Despite the enormous pressure to return to work (including from some of
the women's husbands who had been laid off) the women stuck to their
principles and only returned once a guarantee for equal pay had been
established and brokered by Barbara Castle, then the Secretary of State
for Employment and Productivity. At the time the Secretary's direct
intervention with the women was a breach of normal protocols.
As a result of the strike the Equal Pay Act was passed in 1970, leading the way for equal pay for women throughout the Western World.
The story and its impact highlighted for me that some business practices
and/or behaviours of management are just plain wrong and need to be
treated as such. The courage of the Dagenham women highlights how a
single minded approach to 'righting wrongs' even in the most lopsided of
'fights' can and does result in positive change.
It would be inaccurate of me to suggest that equal pay for women is now a
non issue. Quite simply it isn't. But the Dagenham Strike started the
ball rolling in a positive direction.
I recommend watching the movie, not just from an entertainment perspective but from a historical one as well.
Finally, what 'wrongs' need to be 'righted' in your organisation?
Sunday, March 3, 2013
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You are here: Home / From the President / Some ideas are just plain wrong ... Professor Ian lee, Professor at the Sprott School of Business, Carleton ... there is no longer any such thing as a lifetime guarantee of employment. Business NLP
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