Equal Opportunities (Hansard, 29 October 1987)

§ Ms. Richardson

asked the Secretary of State for Wales what is (a) the proportion of working time allocated to his departmental equal opportunities officer for equal opportunities duties, (b) the other duties carried out by the departmental equal opportunities officer, (c) the proportion, and the amount, of the departmental budget allocated to equal opportunities work, (d) the number of occasions when the departmental equal opportunities officer meets equal opportunities officers from other Government Departments each year, (e) the guidelines issued to departmental training officers and equal opportunities officers to promote the use of section 47 of the Sex Discrimination Act and (f) what action has been taken to facilitate job share, part-time working and parental leave.

§ Mr. Peter Walker

The information requested is as follows:

(a) Ten per cent., but see (c) below.
(b) The equal opportunities officer is also responsible for pay and allowances policy, superannuation, training including the senior management development programme, pay superannuation and conditions of service of staff of non-departmental public bodies, terms of appointment of consultants and line management of operational staff.
(c) This is not separately identifiable. The equal opportunities officer is responsible for co-ordinating the Civil Service policy on non-discrimination in my Department; other staff within personnel management division and line managers are to varying degrees responsible for developing, implementing and monitoring equal opportunities policy.
(d) There is a number of occasions throughout the year when equal opportunities officers from all Departments meet.
(e) The general guidelines on training were included in the "Programme of Action for Women in the Civil Service" issued by the OMCS(MPO) in 1984 and these were brought to the attention of the equal opportunities officer and departmental training officer.
(f) Applications for job sharing, part-time working and parental leave are sympathetically considered against the needs of efficient management. My Department will shortly be issuing to all staff a leaflet on coping with domestic changes which will provide comprehensive information and advice on the facilities available for part-time working and job sharing, special leave, maternity leave and reinstatement.