Sara Davies, former star of the BBC’s Dragons’ Den and serial entrepreneur (pictured, left), is reminding workers that they are a company’s “greatest asset” after research from Fair Pay UK, which surveyed 2,000 nationally representative adults, revealed a striking contradiction in Britain’s attitudes towards workplace equality.
The research suggested that more than 3.5 million could think that gender inequality does not exist. But while one in fourteen people (7%) believe gender inequality no longer exists, two-thirds (67%) say work traditionally carried out by women continues to be undervalued in 2026.
Alongside these revelations, the survey found that men are almost twice as likely as women to believe gender inequality no longer exists; nearly a third (29%) of people say they have never discussed their salary with a colleague, and more than a third (36%) have never spoken to a manager about their pay in their current or previous role.
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Fair Pay UK is behind a landmark legal challenge to recover billions of pounds from major UK retailers and place it back in the pockets of workers.
Legal cases are underway against Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons, seeking to reclaim billions of pounds for in-store workers – particularly women – who they argue were underpaid throughout their employment.
If successful, it could see former and current hourly-paid employees up and down the country being awarded thousands of pounds in back pay, as those affected could have lost up to £6,000 per year of service.
The cases centre on the claim that supermarkets pay in-store workers – roles more often done by women – less than their colleagues in the warehouse despite the work being of equal value.
Backing the initiative, Davies said: “I’ve always believed that people are any company’s greatest asset. Fairness, transparency and recognising the value people bring are fundamental to building successful businesses.
“There has been so much progress made in the workplace for women to have the equal and right opportunities, but fairness in the workplace is something we should never stop striving for.
“Everyone should understand their rights at work, and if you’ve worked in an hourly paid supermarket role, it’s worth checking whether equal pay law could apply to you.”
The initiative has also been backed by Joeli Brearley MBE (right), activist and founder of Pregnant Then Screwed – a charity which addresses the ‘motherhood penalty’ – who said women in retail had been “systematically undervalued.”
She said: “Equal pay has never just been about wages. It’s about whose work we value. That’s why this legal action by Fair Pay UK and Harcus Parker, on behalf of supermarket shop floor workers, is so important.
“For decades, jobs predominantly done by women, particularly working-class women, have been systematically undervalued. This isn’t abstract. It’s £3 an hour, week after week, year after year, taken from some of the lowest-paid women in the country.
“Over the course of a working life, that’s tens of thousands of pounds, leaving hardworking people without the financial security they deserve.
“When women are underpaid, it’s not just individuals who lose. Families lose income, communities lose spending power, and inequality becomes entrenched.
“The outcome of this case has the potential to be transformative, not just for supermarket workers, but for millions of women in female-dominated sectors across the UK.”
Nate Barber, partner at law firm Harcus Parker, which is behind Fair Pay UK, added: “We are thrilled to see Sara and Joeli join this deeply impactful cause. It’s encouraging to see names as big as theirs stand shoulder to shoulder with all of the hard-working people this affects.
“Despite decades of progress, work traditionally done by women is still too often undervalued – that’s borne out in our new research…
“Fair Pay UK is about showing these huge supermarkets that the people they employ are not numbers on a sheet, they are people whose time and skill should be respected at all times.
“We encourage anyone who has worked for these supermarkets to sign up, with no up-front costs, and see if they have a claim because we estimate that there’s a very strong chance you have.”
