Earnings (Public Sector)

Mr. Watson
asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish a table showing earnings in the public sector relative to the private sector over the most recent period for which figures are available.

Mr. Bruce-Gardyne
The following table shows the main public sector earnings figures from each of the Department of Employment's new earnings surveys as a percentage of the corresponding private sector figures. The table will be included in a short article in the December issue of the Treasury's "Economic Progress Report", which is to be published on 15 December. A copy will be placed in the Library.

-------------
|           |
-------------
|Manuals    |
-------------
|Non-manuals|
-------------
|Total      |
-------------
|Manuals‡   |
-------------
|Non-manuals|
-------------
|Total      |
-------------
|Manuals‡   |
-------------
|Non-manuals|
-------------
|Total      |
-------------
|Manuals    |
-------------
|Non-Manuals|
-------------
|Total      |
-------------

Source:

DE Gazette December 1977 and New Earnings Survey each year 1978–81.

* Comparisons have been made in terms of the average gross weekly earnings of full-time men aged 21 and over, whose pay during the Survey period was not affected by absence. Manuals and non-manual group earnings have been related to the appropriate private sector group.

† Includes NHS.

‡ The figures for central Government, local government and public corporations are calculated on a rather different basis in the periods 1970–77 and 1978–1981. The different bases of calculation have no effect on the figures for the public sector as a whole, and a significant effect only on the figures for manuals in central Government and local authorities: results on both bases for 1977 suggest that the figures on the 1970–77 basis may have understated the level of earnings for those workers by 2½ per cent, and 4½ per cent, respectively.

• If rough adjustments are made for:
 i. the 1981 non-industrial Civil Service award which was too late to be included in the 1981 NES;ii. the effects of the Civil Service strike (which had a greater effect on the lower grades than on the higher grades and so raised the average earnings of those whose pay was not affected by absence);

the central Government non-manuals figure would be 107 and the total public sector figure would be 108·8.