§ Mr. Lawsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the percentage change in the number of (a) male and (b) female employees in employment between March 1974 and March 1978, or any later date for which figures are available; and what is the reason for any difference between these two percentages.
§ Mr. GoldingIn the period March 1974 to June 1978, the latest date for which figures are available
826W(a) the number of male employees in employment, seasonally adjusted, is provisionally estimated to have decreased by 2.4 per cent.Germany, Italy, Sweden, Canada and Japan.
§ Mr. GoldingData for the third quarter of 1978 using United States definitions, and for Canada and Japan using national definitions, are not available. The remaining unemployment rates are shown below. Rates using national definitions are not comparable owing to differences in the concept, coverage and definition of unemployment. Quarterly and monthly rates for the European countries, except Sweden, adjusted to United States concepts should be viewed as only approximate indicators of unemployment. The rate for Italy adjusted to United States of America concepts is under review.
(b) for females there was an increase, provisionally estimated as 3.4 per cent.
The difference between these two percentages reflects a variety of changes in patterns of employment over the period.
For females a decline in employment in production industries has been more than offset by an increase in employment in the services sector, particularly in part-time employment. For males a somewhat larger decline in employment in production industries has only been partly offset by the increase in employment in the services sector.
§ Mr. Lawsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the index of the number of people in employment for every subsequent quarter in the United 827W Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, Japan, France, West Germany and Italy, taking the second quarter of 1974 as 100.
§ Mr. GoldingThe latest available data are given in the following table. These
CIVILIAN EMPLOYMENT (INDEX: 2nd Quarter 1974=100) United Kingdom United States Canada Japan† West Germany Italy‡ 1974—Q2 … … 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 3 … … 100.3 100.1 101.3 99.4 99.1 101.5 4 … … 100.1 99.5 101.9 99.3 98.2 101.7 1975—Q1 … … 99.6 98.1 101.8 98.9 97.2 101.0 2 … … 99.5 98.1 102.8 99.1 96.3 100.1 3 … … 99.3 98.8 103.4 99.6 95.6 102.1 4 … … 99.1 99.2 104.2 99.7 95.4 101.9 1976—Q1 … … 98.8 100.6 105.2 100.3 95.2 99.4 2 … … 98.8 101.6 105.1 99.8 95.0 100.8 3 … … 98.9* 102.0 105.8 100.5 94.9 104.5 4 … … 99.1* 102.5 105.6 100.7 95.3 102.9 1977—Q1 … … 99.2* 103.5 106.4 101.2 95.2 105.9 2 … … 99.3* 104.9 107.1 101.6 94.7 107.5 3 … … 99.3* 105.6 107.8 101.8 94.5 107.6 4 … … 99.3* 107.0 108.3 102.1 94.9 106.3 1978—Q1 … … 99.4* 108.1 109.3 102.5 105.7 2 … … 99.4* ֵ ֵ ֵ ֵ ֵ * Provisional. † Including armed forces. ‡ Not seasonally adjusted. ֵ Not available. Sources:
Department of Employment Gazette.
OECD Labour Force Statistics.
§ Mr. Lawsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment what was the total number of people in paid employment in the United Kingdom in January 1974 and in the latest month for which figures are available how many of these jobs were sustained by official subsidies and grants; and whether he will provide the figures in these two months for employment in private industry, nationalised industry, the private services sector, and local and central government.
§ Mr. GoldingThere were 23,127,000 employees in employment including members of Her Majesty's Forces in the United Kingdom in December 1973. The latest month for which information is available is June 1978, for which the corresponding figure is provisionally estimated to be 23,017,000.
In June 1978 about 265,000 jobs in Great Britain were supported either wholly or partly by the special employment measures operated by my Department and the Manpower Services Commission, all of which have been introduced since January 1974. In January 1974 it is estimated that the regional employment premium was paid in res-
828Windices are based on seasonally adjusted figures—except where indicated—which are frequently subject to revision. Owing to differences in national definitions and methods of compilation, the figures are not fully comparable.
pect of about 1½ million employees in development and special development areas in Great Britain. This measure no longer exists.
Only mid-year estimates of employment in the public and private sectors are available. The table below gives the information requested for 1974 and 1977, the latest year for which data are available.
EMPLOYEES IN EMPLOYMENT IN THE UNITED KINGDOM Mid-year estimates in thousands 1974 1977* Private industry† 8,726 8,005 Agriculture 407 384 Nationalised industries and other public corporations 1,981 2,086 Services in the private sector‡ 7,089 7,216 Central government (including HM Forces) 2,088 2,305 Local authorities 2,844 2,995 Total employees in employment (including HM Forces) 23,135 22,991 * Provisional. † The coverage of industry is Orders II-XXI of the Standard Industrial Classification (1968). ‡ The coverage of the services sector is Orders XXII-XXVII of the Standard Industrial Classification (1968).