The Green Party has welcomed the Equality Bill, which contains some measures to address the continuing systematic discrimination against women in terms of pay.
However, the party has also called on the government to take real action on the causes of unequal pay and discrimination against women in the workplace, and to provide better legal remedies when cases occur.
The Leader of the Green Party, Dr Caroline Lucas MEP, said:
"We are very much aligned to recommendations put forward by the Fawcett Society, which calls for companies to undergo compulsory health checks to compare the earnings of their employees and to take action to redress inequalities.
"For women already facing pay discrimination, the law needs to be changed to provide better assistance to those considering cases, and to ensure the swift resolution of those cases coming to court."
Dr Lucas said there is key issues faced by many women in paid employment, as is the inadequacy of the national minimum wage, particularly in London, the South East and other areas of the country where living costs are particularly high.
Dr Lucas said:
"The Green Party - through its members on the London Assembly and through its councillors in the capital - has been working to see the London Living Wage (currently £7.45 an hour) implemented across the capital.
"In Brighton, councillors have called for all council workers to be paid a decent wage, and in Norwich, the council (on which the Greens are the official opposition) backed a Green Party motion to make it a priority to work towards ensuring all workers in the city are paid a living wage.
"But the Green Party goes further in urging recognition of the vital importance of unpaid work - including caring for the young, the old and those with disabilities, as well as community work and other unpaid but vital activities that help to hold our communities together."
Dr Lucas was critical of Government's plans for Welfare Reform, which she said deters people from finding work as benefits are reduced once they do find employment.
She cited the Green Party's Citizen's Income policy which would help combat the chronic levels of poverty faced by vulnerable groups in society, especially for single mothers and pensioners. It would enable them to mix part-time work, home-based work, volunteering and caring in creative ways that would help produce a healthier, happier society.
Dr Lucas said:
"In contrast to the Government's plans for welfare reform the Greens Citizens' Income would entitle everyone to a decent basic level of income without having to be means-tested. This would help prevent thousands of families and vulnerable people from falling into the poverty trap."