§ Mr. Lubbockasked the Minister of Labour what is the ratio between the average wage of women employed in manufacturing industry now and at 1st February 1949; and what is the equivalent figure allowing for the change in the value of the £.
§ Mr. WhitelawInquiries into the earnings of manual wage-earners are held each April and October. For women wage-earners employed full-time in manufacturing industry the ratio of average weekly earnings at the latest available date (October, 1962) to the corresponding figure for April, 1949, is 2.08:1. After taking into account the change in the value of the £ as measured by the Index of Retail Prices the equivalent ratio is 1.24:1.