§ Mr. Clemitsonasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons are currently employed in the hat, cap and millinery industry as defined by the Hat, Cap and Millinery Wages Council (Great Britain) Wages, Regulation Order; what proportion female workers constitute of the total number; and what are the corresponding figures for each of the past five years.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerThe most reliable estimate is given in CIR Report Number 77 on the Clothing Wages Councils. This shows that at the time of the survey in mid-1972 about 6,400 persons were employed in scope of the Hat, Cap and Millinery Wages Council, of whom 76 per cent. were female, including 15 per cent. home workers. Comparable figures are not held for a five-year period, but wages inspection records suggest a decline in the number of persons employed in recent years.