§ Mr. Ridleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will set out details 194W of the offer made to steelworkers in Harland and Wolff Limited for a pay rise; and how this compares with the criteria laid down under stage two of the counter-inflation policy.
§ Mr. Dudley SmithI understand that, because of a dispute over the interpretation and application of an existing bonus scheme, negotiations between the company and the steelworkers on future pay arrangements have not yet begun. The company has, however, indicated its willingness to pay the maximum permissible under stage 2 of the counter-inflation policy and to put proposals to the Pay Board for dealing in due course with the disparity in pay levels between Harland and Wolff and other shipyards in the United Kingdom.