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Back in Time for the Factory

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A group of modern workers experience working life in a factory in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

A group of modern workers go back to the 60s, 70s and 80s to learn how an unsung army of factory girls took on the fight for equality at work and at home.

Series 1

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Alex Jones

Catrin Griffith

Wall to Wall Media

Back in Time for the Factory: Series 1: Episode 3

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Episode 3

BBC Two - Back in Time for the Factory, Series 1, Episode 3

In 1976, the women discover whether changes in the law lead to equality.

Modern women go back in time to the factory floor. The year is 1976, a year of great hope for women in Britain. But will changes in the law lead to equality on our factory floor?

The year is 1976, when disco was still dominating the dancefloors and maxi dresses were in vogue. It was a year of great hope for women in Britain - the Sex Discrimination Act had been passed in 1975 and the Equal Pay Act had finally come in to force at the end of 1975. But will the changes in the law lead to equality on our factory floor or will our women's hopes be dashed once again?

The Equal Pay Act meant that companies now had to pay women just as much as men for the same job. But our modern Valley Wear employees discover that there are ways of getting around the law. By 1976, women were still earning only 74 per cent of the male hourly rate as employers all over the country found loopholes to avoid paying women more. In a year of economic uncertainty and rocketing inflation, our women will have to decide whether equality is worth striking over. Following in the footsteps of the original female workers who were stalwarts of the unions fighting inequality, they will navigate the world of pickets, banners and crossing the line.

Despite the uncertainty, the production line will still have to run, as the women take on their toughest challenge yet: the prairie dress. Hugely popular in mid-1970s Britain, this romantic bohemian silhouette was pioneered by one of Wales's leading designers, Laura Ashley. By 1976, Laura Ashley had shops from Paris to Melbourne, and her designs hung in the most fashionable boutiques of west London. The women struggle with hems, bodices and collars as they attempt to recreate this iconic 70s style.

And off the production line, the factory holds its own beauty pageant - an event companies all over Britain would have been happy to support as part of social life of the workplace. No beauty contest was complete without the glamour of the swimsuit round, and our factory pageant is no different. But how will the modern women feel about parading in their swimming costumes?

Back in Time for the Factory: Series 1

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A group of modern workers experience working in a factory in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

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