Backto60 court case: The women whose 'lives have been annihilated' and their fight for pension equality
The Court of Appeal will rule on Tuesday morning (September 15)
Matthew SmithLocal Democracy Reporter
Backto60 believe they are owed thousands from the government (Image: Backto60)
This week could be a historic one for millions of women born in the 1950s.
Tomorrow (Tuesday, September 15) a campaign group started by a Hertford woman, Backto60, will find out the result of a judicial review into what they argue is gender discrimination against millions of women.
The group argues that women born in the 1950s were robbed of their retirement after the pension age was increased from 60 to 65.
For some who had made retirement plans they then had to find enough money for five more years, forcing them back into work or having to sell their homes to survive.
Joanne Welch, founder of Backto60, said that for many of them, "their lives have been annihilated."
"It's modern slavery there is no other word for it"
Joanne added that the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the plight in starker terms.
"It's modern slavery, there is no other word for it," she said.
"There were women out there in the pandemic and some of them told us, 'I've been sacked, I'm too afraid to go to work' because over-60s are exposed to severe Covid."
"And they were afraid - not just afraid - literally beside themselves with anxiety to even leave the house because maybe someone in the house was shielding.
"In April-May time it was chaos everywhere and 50s women were crying 'why have I got to go to work and everybody else is being helped?'
"I hear myself say these things and I can't believe the words coming out of my mouth. Truly, it's been an atrocity of monumental proportions."
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Backto60's argument is that the women weren't given enough notice of the change, and left them too young to claim the state pension and too old to look for work - with ministers even suggesting they should apply for apprenticeships.
The campaign is not associated with Women Against State Pension Injustice (WASPI), but both are fighting the same issue, albeit with different ideal outcomes.
While WASPI have argued for compensation for the women affected, Joanne and Back to 60 instead believe that that all the women should be paid in full for the pension they should have received.
The Pensions Minister Guy Opperman said on March 9 that those kind of measures would cost "something in the region of £215 billion."
However, Joanne disputes the way this is being framed as a hit to taxpayers.
Joanne Welch from Hertford founded Backto60 (Image: Joanne Welch)
She said: "Let me tell you, this will cost taxpayers nothing at all. The reason it will cost nothing is because these contributions made by women are their property.
"When we are reimbursed, it's just returning our property - it's not costing the taxpayers anything, it's our earned dues we paid in over a lifetime of work."
The outcome of the landmark case will be announced at 10.30am on Tuesday, September 15.
The appeal comes following the High Court rejecting a judicial review into two test cases of Julie Delve, 62, and Karen Glynn, 63 who argued discrimination on the grounds of sex and age.
The hearing took place at the Court of Appeal over two days in July, with this decision potentially having historic consequences.
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Instead of being disappointed by last year's decision, Joanne believes that this was an opportunity to put their case forward again.
She said: "We won leave to appeal on all grounds that the Court of Appeal having challenged the ruling.
"To win leave to appeal on all grounds at the Court of Appeal is a magnificent achievement by the legal team - it's a huge accolade for them having turned it around.
"We're confident this is discrimination and about all our argument and there is no doubt that this is discrimination and women weren't told [about the changes]."
"The amazing women have been plucked from obscurity and brought the government to court"
Regardless of the decision on Tuesday, Joanne is clear that the work is far from done.
The group will be working towards a People's Tribunal which aims to transpose the UN Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women into British law, more than 40 years after it was signed.
They are also focused on publicising the issues faced, so they can fight for change both through legal challenges but also through political action.
Joanne said: "It's been amazing, and it's not over yet - even when the ruling comes out there's still work to do.
"These amazing 50's women who have been plucked from obscurity literally brought the government to court and made them answer questions that they never wanted the public to hear, let alone the judiciary.
"That in itself is an achievement that these ordinary women like myself have been facilitated through a world class legal team to do this - we've been campaigning online night and day for this.
"We're not looking or anything other than restitution and to ensure that all women and girls now never face what 50's women have been put through because, believe me, it's torture."
More information on Backto60 can be found on their website here.
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