§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what are the average earnings of disabled workers employed by Remploy; and how they compare with average earnings of (a) all manual workers, (b) manual workers in the furniture industry, (c) manual workers in the bookbinding industry, (d) manual workers in the leather goods industry, (e) manual workers in the clothing outerwear industry and (f) manual workers in light engineering industries;
(2) what is the average cost per employee of the pension arrangements for disabled workers employed by Remploy and in workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. John GrantI will reply to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.
§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will take steps to remove the disparity between the sick pay of disabled workers employed by Remploy and in workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what action he has taken and what further action he proposes to take to remove the disparity between the pay of Remploy disabled workers and the pay of disabled workers employed in workshops for the blind;
429W(2) whether he will take steps to ensure that Remploy increases the minimum rates of pay of its disabled workers to the minimum rate paid to disabled workers in local authority blind workshops;
(3) what plans he has to improve the comparative earnings of Remploy disabled workers in relation to the pay of employees of blind workshops, as promised by the Secretary of State for Employment in 1974.
§ Mr. John GrantIt is for Remploy Ltd and the trade unions representing Remploy's workers to negotiate pay settlements having regard to the constraints of resources and of pay guidelines. I am
Effective service Full pay Half pay Remploy Ltd.— Less than 1 year … … … … … Nil Nil 1 year and less than 4 years … … … … … 5 weeks — 4 years and less than 8 years … … … … … 8 weeks — 8 years and over … … … … … 10 weeks — Workshops for blind people— Less than 6 months … … … … … Nil Nil 6 months and less than 12 months … … … … … 4 weeks 4 weeks 1 year and less than 2 years … … … … … 9 weeks 9 weeks 2 years and less than 3 years … … … … … 13 weeks 13 weeks 3 years and less than 4 years … … … … … 16 weeks 16 weeks 4 years and less than 6 years … … … … … 20 weeks 20 weeks 6 years and over … … … … … 26 weeks 26 weeks
§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the average bonus earnings of Remploy disabled workers; and what are the average bonus earnings of disabled workers employed in workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. John GrantI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission, which is responsible for Remploy, that the average weekly bonus paid to its disabled workers by Remploy in July 1978 was approximately £3. Comparable information for workshops for the blind is not available.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he has any plans to introduce a single wage structure for all disabled workers in sheltered employment as recommended by the consultative document "Sheltered Employment".
§ Mr. John GrantI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that there are no plans for introducing a single wage structure for severely disabled workers in sheltered employment. However, a working party of the National Advisory Council on Employment of
430Winformed by the Manpower Services Commission that the long term objective for Remploy remains that of giving disabled workers earning opportunities no less favourable than those offered by workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the sick pay entitlements for disabled workers employed by Remploy and in workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. John GrantI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission, which is responsible for Remploy, that the information requested is as follows:
Disabled People is currently examining the wages structure.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will publish the results of the special pay survey of the comparative earnings of Remploy workers and workers in workshops for the blind conducted by his Department in 1975.
§ Mr. John GrantA summary of the results of that survey has been put in the Library. Copies may be obtained from the Manpower Services Commission.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment what are the average earnings of disabled workers employed by Remploy and of disabled workers employed in local authority workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. John GrantI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that average earnings for severely disabled workers in Remploy in July 1978 were £47.60 per week. Comparable figures for disabled workers in local authority workshops are not available.
431W
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment what is the minimum rate of pay of disabled workers employed by Remploy and of disabled workers employed in local authority workshops for the blind.
§ Mr. John GrantI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission, which is responsible for Remploy, that the basic weekly adult starting rates of pay for severely disabled workers at Remploy are £42.70 in the provinces and £49.38 in the London area; in local authority workshops for the blind adult starting rates are £45.80 and £52.47 respectively.
§ Mr. Frank R. Whiteasked the Secretary of State for Employment, in view of the undertaking given by the Remploy board and the Secretary of State for Employment in 1974, if he intends to regard pay of Remploy workers as a special case in the current pay round.
§ Mr. John GrantThe undertaking given in 1974 was that, as circumstances and Government policy permit, discussions would be held to consider ways of reducing any significant gap between the average earnings of Remploy workers and those employed in workshops for the blind. I am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that negotiations about the current settlement at Remploy are still in progress. The size of any likely gap will not be known until negotiations are complete. Whether any case for special treatment needs to be considered cannot be determined at this stage.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will place in the Library a copy of the joint statement agreed by the Remploy board and the Secretary of State for Employment in 1974 describing the Government's intentions for the movement of future earnings in Remploy.
§ Mr. John GrantYes; I have arranged for a copy to be placed in the Library.