§ 3. Mr. Nellistasked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the percentage decline in the ratio of young people's wages to adult wages for (a) boys and (b) girls over the period 1979 to 1983; and if he will make a statement.
§ The Under-Secretary of State for Employment (Mr. Alan Clark)The earnings of boys relative to men fell by 8 per cent., and those of girls relative to women fell by 12 per cent. between April 1979 and April 1983.
§ Mr. NellistDoes the Minister agree that those figures demonstrate that since the Government took office they have managed to co-ordinate a campaign to drive down the general level of wages for youngsters? Why did the hon. Gentleman allow the Chancellor of the Exchequer to steal £55 million from the YTS allowances in the Department of Employment budget, which sum could have been used to increase the allowance by £3.50 over the present £25, and thus stop the rot of the reduction in youngsters' wages?
§ Mr. ClarkI completely reject the hon. Gentleman's statement. It is perfectly natural that youngsters who have just left school should command less pay. Employers will not recruit inexperienced and untrained youngsters in a slack labour market unless there is an incentive to do so.
§ Mr. BudgenWill my hon. Friend warmly commend the wise young people who have accepted lower relative wages to price themselves into work? When will the Government repeal the minimum wage legislation, which so cruelly causes unemployment?
§ Mr. ClarkMy hon. Friend is right, but we are bound by the conventions of the ILO to observe the rulings of wages councils until they can be reviewed. The fact that the lower youngsters' wages are the more likely they are to find jobs is demonstrable to anyone with common sense. It is especially apparent in West Germany, where both wages and youth unemployment are much lower.