HC Deb 05 May 1982 vol 23 c69W
Mr. Ernie Ross

asked the Secretary of State for Employment how many female employees are in (a) the engineering industry and (b) all industries; and what percentage of the total work force they make up in each case.

Mr. Alison

It is estimated that in December 1981, the latest date for which comprehensive figures are available, there were 8.6 million female employees in employment in all industries and services in Great Britain. They made up 42.4 per cent. of all employees in employment. In the engineering industries—order groups VII to IX of the 1968 Standard Industrial Classification—female employees numbered about 350,000: 24 per cent. of all employees in those industries.