The Principle of Equality in the Labour Market: 19th Annual
Conference of the ‘Pontignano’ International Seminar on
Comparative Labour Law
Provisional Programme
Location (unless otherwise indicated): Room B16,
Faculty of Law, 10 West Road, Cambridge
Sunday 22 July
Arrival at Peterhouse
1930
Dinner (Upper Hall, Peterhouse)
Monday 23 July
815-900
Breakfast (Hall, Peterhouse)
930-1100
Welcome followed by the first presentation of national materials
1100-1130
Coffee
1130-1300
Presentations of national materials continue
1300-1430
Lunch (Hall, Peterhouse)
1430-1600
Presentations of national materials continue
1600-1630
Tea
1630-1830
Presentations of national materials continue
1930
Dinner (Upper Hall, Peterhouse)
Tuesday 24 July
815-900
Breakfast (Hall, Peterhouse)
930-1100
Presentations of national materials continue
1100-1130
Coffee
1130-1300
Presentations of national materials continue
1300-1430
Lunch (Hall, Peterhouse)
1430-1600
Introduction to the working groups and then working groups meet
(rooms B16, G11, G35, T9)
1600-1630
Tea
1630-1830
Working groups continue (rooms B16, G11, G35, T9)
For those interested there is evensong in King’s College Chapel at
1730
1930
Dinner (Upper Hall, Peterhouse)
Wednesday 25 July 2001
900-945
Breakfast (Hall, Peterhouse)
1000-1100
Working groups continue (rooms B16, G11, G35, T9)
1100-1130
Coffee
1130-1230
Working groups continue (rooms B16, G11, G35, T9)
1230-1330
Lunch (Faculty of Law)
1400
Coach leaves from Peterhouse for visit to the Fens and Norfolk coast
1515
Tour of Ely Cathedral
1800
Visit to Burnham Market
1900
Dinner at the White Horse, Brancaster Staithe
Thursday 26 July
815-900
Breakfast (Hall, Peterhouse)
930-1100
Working groups continue (rooms B16, G11, G35, T9)
1100-1130
Coffee
1130-1300
Working groups continue (rooms B16, G11, G35, T9)
1300-1430
Lunch (Hall, Peterhouse)
1430-1600
Methodology session




Sandra Fredman (University of Oxford) feminist and philosophical
approaches to equality
Paul Skidmore (University of Bristol) socio-legal approaches to
equality
Stephen Hardy (University of Manchester) empirical approaches to
equality
Bob Hepple (University of Cambridge) reforming equality laws
1600-1630
Tea
1430-1830
Methodology session continues
1930
Dinner (Hall, Peterhouse)
Friday 27 July
815-900
Breakfast (Hall, Peterhouse)
930-1100
Working groups continue
1100-1130
Coffee
1130-1300
Working groups continue
1300-1430
Lunch (Hall, Peterhouse)
1430-1545
Presentation of the results of the working groups
1545-1615
Tea
1615-1715
Presentation of the results of the working groups and conclusions
For those interested there is a possibility of going punting on the River Cam before
dinner.
1930
End of Conference Dinner (Upper Hall, Peterhouse)
Saturday 28 July
815-900
Breakfast (Hall, Peterhouse)
Depart from Peterhouse
If you wish to stay a further night in Peterhouse, please notify Simon Deakin
(sfd20@econ.cam.ac.uk) by 1 July 2001.
Points to note:

Accommodation.
Unless otherwise notified, accommodation will be in
Peterhouse, one of the colleges of Cambridge University (for further information,
visit the college web site: http://www.pet.cam.ac.uk). The address of the college
is: Peterhouse, Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1RD; tel. (44-1223) 338200,
fax. (44-1223) 337578. On arrival at the college, please register at the Porters’
Lodge which is adjacent to the entry to the college on Trumpington Street. The
Porters will provide you with the keys to your room and give directions. Maps
indicating the location of Peterhouse and of the Faculty of Law will be available
on arrival. You may also consult maps which are provided on the Peterhouse web
site (see above) and on the University of Cambridge web site: go to
http://www.cam.ac.uk/cambarea/. This web site has a range of useful information
about the Cambridge area.

Travel. If arriving by air, the best airport for Cambridge is London Stansted.
There are regular trains and coaches direct from Stansted to Cambridge. If you
arrive at London Heathrow or London Gatwick, or at one of the London railway
terminals, the best option is probably to take a train to Cambridge from London
King’s Cross Station (trains depart at 15 and 45 minutes past the hour), or a bus
from Victoria coach station. There are good train connections from Heathrow and
Gatwick to central London. There are also coaches which go to Cambridge direct
from Heathrow and Gatwick, but these are rather slow. On arrival at Cambridge
railway station or bus station, take a taxi to Peterhouse (see above,
Accommodation).

Working sessions. All the working sessions will take place in the Faculty of Law
of the University of Cambridge. The Faculty of Law building (the address of
which is 10 West Road, Cambridge) is part of the arts and social sciences campus
known as the Sidgwick Site. It is around 10 minutes’ walk from Peterhouse.
Maps and details of locations will be made available when you arrive.
Information about the Faculty is also available on the University of Cambridge
web site: go to http://www.law.cam.ac.uk/

System presentations. Each country will have 1½ hours to present their system
(approximately 1 hour for presentation and 30 mins for questions). It would be
useful for each country to send a short paper in advance. We should like, if
possible, for the paper to cross-refer and identify the relevant sections in the
materials. There will be powerpoint and overhead projectors available if these are
needed for the purposes of the presentation.

Methodology session. A session to discuss methodological issues in research on
equality has been scheduled for Thursday 24 July. The speakers will be Sandra
Fredman, Paul Skidmore, Stephen Hardy and Bob Hepple.

Materials and background paper. The materials and the paper should be sent to
Simon Deakin, Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, 10 West Road,
Cambridge CB3 9DZ by 1 July 2001. See below for suggestions on the themes.

Other activities. As indicated on the Programme, it is possible to go to Evensong
in King’s College Chapel on Tuesday 24 July. On Wednesday 25 July a half-day
visit to the Fens and Norfolk coast has been arranged. Punting on the River Cam
will be organised for the evening of Friday 27 July.

Questions. If you have any questions about the conference please contact
either
Catherine
Barnard
(csb24@cam.ac.uk),
Simon
Deakin
(sfd20@econ.cam.ac.uk), or Richard Hobbs (rjh57@hermes.cam.ac.uk).
The Principle of Equality in the Labour Market: 19th Annual
Conference of the ‘Pontignano’ International Seminar on
Comparative Labour Law
Conference Themes and National Materials
The general theme of the conference is ‘The Principle of Equality in the Labour
Market’. In line with the previous organisation of this conference, we propose that
this theme be broadly interpreted in the light of the relevant laws in the different
systems. We recognise that while the notion of equality is closely bound up with antidiscrimination legislation, it may also extend beyond that legislation. There are
constitutional dimensions which may be explored, as well as the role of economic
arguments in doctrine and case law. The role of administrative agencies and other
bodies in using the equality principle to reduce disadvantage is a further possible
focus, as is the role played by the social partners, social dialogue and collective
bargaining.
The following four sub-themes may provide a useful focus for the organisation of the
materials and for the conference itself, but they are not intended to be overprescriptive. We expect the focus of the discussion to shift in the course of the
conference itself, as in the past.
1. Equality and human rights: the link between the equality principle and human
rights discourse; the place of equality in national constitutions; the role of
constitutional norms on equality in shaping legislation and case-law; the role of
international labour standards on equality in shaping domestic law.
2. Equality and economic efficiency: possible tensions between the principle of
equality and economic arguments in, for example, the areas of equal pay between men
and women, and/or the employer’s duty of adjustment in disability discrimination.
3. Equality and employment opportunities: the role of equality legislation in
promoting access to the labour market for disadvantaged groups; the use made of
affirmative action, positive discrimination, and administrative measures; the role of
equality in employment policy (with particular reference to the ‘equality pillar’ of the
European employment strategy and its expression in the national-level practices of
particular systems).
4. Equality, the courts, and the industrial relations system: the division of labour
between the courts and the social partners in implementing equality strategies; the role
of social dialogue and ‘proceduralised’ solutions to inequality; the place of equality in
the wider system of employment relations; equality as a possible basis for ‘fair’ wages
and working conditions.
We suggest that these themes be used in a loose way to frame the choice of national
materials which are to be used as a basis for the discussion at the conference. As
before, the national materials could usefully consist of key legislative and judicial
texts and doctrinal writings from each system. These will be copied and made
available prior to and at the conference. The choice of particular materials to send is
of course one for the different national organisers. Please send your materials to
Simon Deakin, Faculty of Law, 10 West Road, Cambridge CB3 9DZ, United
Kingdom, to arrive no later than 1 July 2001.