asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish a table showing basic pay and average earnings for the five groups of workers who topped the wages league in 1960 1965, 1970, 1971, 1972, and 1973.
The figures set out below are for the five industries—generally orders of the Standard Industrial Classification—with the highest average weekly earnings for men manual workers at October in each of the years requested except October 1973, for which date the figures will be available shortly. This follows the basis of ranking used in the report of the Wilberforce Court of Inquiry (Cmnd. 4903, 1972). The figures, except those for coal mining, are taken from the Department's regular inquiries into the earnings and hours of manual workers in manufacturing and certain other industries. Comparisons of average earnings for different groups of workers are affected by many influences, for example, variations in the proportions of skilled and unskilled workers and differences in the average hours worked and in the extent of premium payments for overtime, shift and weekend working, and so on.Comparable averages for basic pay are not available.The figures are as follows:
| EARNINGS OF MEN MANUAL WORKERS (21 YEARS AND OVER)—UNITED KINGDOM | |
| Average weekly earnings | |
| £ | |
| October 1960 (1958 Standard Industrial Classification) | |
| Vehicles manufacture | 16·98 |
| Paper, printing and publishing | 16·95 |
| Coal-mining* | 16·28 |
| Metal manufacture | 16·14 |
| Engineering and electrical goods manufacture | 15·26 |
| October 1965 (1958 Standard Industrial Classification) | |
| Paper, printing and publishing | 22·83 |
| Vehicles manufacture | 22·43 |
| Coal-mining* | 21·21 |
| Metal manufacture | 21·16 |
| Chemicals and allied industries | 20·38 |
| October 1970 (1968 Standard Industrial Classification) | |
| Paper, printing and publishing | 33·68 |
| Vehicles manufacture | 32·43 |
| Coal and petroleum products manufacture | 30·82 |
| Metal manufacture | 29·98 |
| Transport and communication (except railways) | 29·6 |
Average weekly earnings£ | |
October 1971 (1968 Standard Industria Classification) | |
| Paper, printing and publishing | 36·04 |
| Vehicles manufacture | 35·21 |
| Coal and petroleum products manufacture | 34·15 |
| Transport and communication (except railways) | 33·73 |
| Shipbuilding and marine engineering | 33·13 |
October 1972 (1968 Standard Industrial Classification) | |
| Vehicles manufacture | 41·63 |
| Paper, printing and publishing | 41·21 |
| Coal and petroleum products manufacture | 38·88 |
| Coal-mining* | 38·21 |
| Metal manufacture | 37·97 |
* The figures for coal-mining are provided to the Department regularly by the National Coal Board to complement those for other industries obtained from the Department's enquiry in manufacturing and certain other industries. The NCB figures of cash earnings include a provision for rest days and holidays with pay but exclude the value of allowances in kind, and so may not be strictly comparable with those for other industries. The 1972 figures relate to men aged 20 and over. | |
asked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the percentage increase in average weekly earnings in the 12-month periods ending 30th September and 31st October 1972 and 1973, respectively.
The information requested is as follows:
| MONTHLY INDEX OF AVERAGE EARNINGS (SEASONALLY ADJUSTED) | |
| Percentage increase compared with same month of previous year | |
| September 1972 | 14·0 |
| October 1972 | 15·2 |
| September 1973 | 13·3 |
| October 1973 | 12·6 |