London Stock Market trailblazers given Freedom of City
- Published
Just six women began working at the LSE in 1973
Some of the first women to work as traders for the London Stock Exchange will receive awards following the 50th anniversary of females joining the trading floor.
Eight women who traded in the 1970s and 80s will be given the Freedom of the City of London for their achievements in the financial sector.
They were praised for their pioneering work in the face of "appallingly sexist behaviour".
The Lord Mayor will hold a ceremony.
Women were first admitted to the trading floor of the historic London Stock Exchange (LSE) in March 1973.
Some of the first to join recall experiencing laddish and misogynistic behaviour in an industry dominated by men.
Hilary Pearson (nee Root) was one of the first women who was admitted.
Hilary Root (now Pearson) was one of the first women at the London Stock Exchange
She joined the stockbroker Sheppards and Chase in 1969.
She said: "Looking back to the 1970s, when six of us 'made history' by turning up to the office on 26 March 1973, working conditions were Dickensian compared to the present day.
"The firm's computer occupied an entire room and there were no desktop terminals or electronic calculators. I well remember the three-day week, working by candlelight."
Sarah Danes, who became a stockbroker in 1978, said: "As women who were not university-educated in those days, it was quite something to join an industry steeped in history and heritage - mostly, of men - in the 1970s and 1980s."
LSE's chief executive Julia Hoggett, who became the first woman to head up the group in 2021, said the traders' "trailblazing paved the way for women's inclusion" in the financial services industry.
She added: "These women broke the mould and, in doing so, they broke a glass ceiling."
The awards will be given during a ceremony at the Lord Mayor's home and office, The Mansion House, on a date yet to be confirmed.
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