asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will make a statement on the industrial dispute involving registrars of births, deaths and marriages; for how long this has been continuing; whether staff are losing any salary for industrial action; and what steps are being taken to resolve it.
The registrars of births, deaths and marriages are in dispute with the local authorities about their grading. Some of them began limited industrial action on 5 May 1981, declining to attend marriages on Saturdays or to send in certain returns. A few local authorities have abated the salaries of the registration officers concerned, and in one case the legality of this action is being challenged by NALGO. Neither my right hon. Friend nor the Registrar General are party to the negotiations in this dispute. ACAS has been involved in some of the discussions, but so far no agreement has been reached.
National Health Service—Directly employed staff | ||||||||
England and Wales | England | |||||||
1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | |
Medical and dental | 26,300 | 17,300 | 23,300 | 35,000 | 35,900 | 37,100 | 38,200 | 39,000 |
Nursing and midwifery | 157,400 | 206,300 | 290,400 | 343,200 | 351,000 | 358,400 | 370,100 | 392,200 |
Ancillary | 139,000 | 171,900 | 178,200 | 172,800 | 172,200 | 171,900 | 172,000 | 172,400 |
Administrative and clerical | 29,400 | 33,700 | 50,200 | 99,000 | 100,300 | 103,000 | 105,400 | 108,600 |
Notes
1 Prior to 1971 separate figures for England only are not available.
2. The classification of staff groups in 1950–1970 differ in some respects from later years.
3. Figures for community health service staff are not included in the figures for 1950–1970.
4. Figures for 1950 are number of staff; for 1960 a mixture of numbers and whole-time equivalent staff, and for other years whole-time equivalent only.
5. Figures for 1950 and 1960 are taken from the Ministry of Health annual reports.