§ Sir E. Graham-Littleasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will give the figures for absenteeism in the Civil Service before and after provision was made for the payment of full sickness benefit for a period of 13 weeks in any one year; and what has been the approximate cost of that provision.
386W
§ Sir J. AndersonI assume that, in referring to figures for absenteeism in the Civil Service, my hon. Friend means figures for sick leave, though this is not the same thing. I am afraid that, owing to shortage of staff, Departments have not kept complete sick leave returns since the outbreak of war, and that up-to-date figures are not available. In any event, provision for three months' fully paid sick leave for senior temporary employees, and rather less for more junior employees, has been in operation in the Civil Service for nearly thirty years,and I do not think that any comparisons with sick leave figures of temporary employees before the last war would, even if they were available, be at all illuminating.