§ Mr. Viggersasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many non-industrial civil servants are paid (a) monthly and (b) weekly in cash;
476W(2) how many jobs could be saved, and what financial benefit would accrue, if all non-industrial civil servants were to be paid monthly by credit to a bank account;
(3) whether he is considering any steps to encourage non-industrial civil servants to accept remuneration by monthly payment into bank accounts.
§ Mr. HayhoeApproximately 9,000 monthly paid and 40,000 weekly paid non-industrial staff are still paid in cash. If these, plus some 80,000 weekly paid non-industrial staff paid other than in cash, were paid monthly by credit transfer to a bank account, it is estimated that a saving would result of some 500 staff now doing pay work. The estimated total savings are about £8 million a year.
Regrettably the Council of Civil Service Unions has opposed change to monthly pay by credit transfer, but since 1 October 1981 all new entrants to the non-industrial grades—except casual staff, cleaners and prison officers—have been so paid and I am now considering ways of encouraging existing staff to move to monthly pay by credit transfer.