Thousands of women went on strike and rallied in Scotland's largest city, demanding equal pay to men.
Tuesday marked the beginning of the 48-hour strike in Glasgow. About 8,000 workers, mostly women, are expected to be part of the strike, which is believed to be the largest of its kind since the U.K. passed the 1970 Equal Pay Act. It's meant to prohibit workplace wage discrimination on the basis of sex.
But according to the workers on strike, that's not what's happening. They say thousands of legal claims on pay discrimination have not been properly addressed by the Glasgow City Council.
In 2006, the council implemented a pay and benefits program to help close the pay gap. But last year, Scotland's highest civil court ruled,Glasgow's version of the program was actually discriminating against women.
It excluded thousands of them from bonuses and according to the workers, female-dominated positions were paid up to nearly $4.00 less than male-dominated positions. And 10 months after the court ruling, they say no offers have been made to rectify the problem.
A legal action group in Scotland estimates that the claims could cost the local government at least $649 million. A spokesperson for the city council said: "We understand why many of our workforce are angry about equal pay, but there is nothing that this strike can achieve that we are not already doing."
Additional reporting by Newsy affiliate CNN.
