HC Deb 09 March 1976 vol 907 cc189-90W
Mr. Rooker

asked the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to prevent the extra production generated by an upturn in the economy being achieved by increased overtime at the expense of new jobs.

Mr. Booth

The Government have no plans to limit overtime working at the present time. Consideration of ways of limiting overtime working is best left to employers and workers or the organisations which represent them.

Mr. Rooker

asked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if any of the employers who contribute to the monthly survey of overtime working in manufacturing industries also contribute to the monthly survey of short-time working; and, if so, in which industrial sector they are operating;

(2) what is the rate of turnover amongst the numbers of employers contributing to the monthly survey of overtime working in each sector of manufacturing industry;

(3) how many employers contribute to the monthly survey of overtime working in manufacturing industries.

Mr. Booth

At June 1975, the sample comprised nearly 13,000 establishments in the manufacturing industries, which included all the larger firms and a representative sample of small establishments.

All the employers in the sample are asked to provide information each month about both overtime and short-time.

The sample of employers was revised in June 1974. It will remain unchanged—apart from the incorporation of some new firms each year to replace firms which have ceased trading—until a new sample is drawn in a few years' time.

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