§ Mr. GrocottTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services how many civil servants are employed in his Department; what are their average weekly working hours, and how many are(a) on flexitime, (b) on job-sharing schemes, (c) on a four-day working week or nine-day fortnight and (d) able to retire with full pension rights at 60 years.
§ Mr. PortilloThe number of civil servants employed in the Department on 1 January 1988 was 101,920; their conditioned hours of service are mainly 41 hours per week in the London pay area and 42 hours elsewhere:
- (a) the opportunity to work flexible working hours is available to most staff apart from those on shift work. No record of the number of staff who work such hours is kept;
245 - (b) 662 staff participate in job-share arrangements.
- (c) there is no scheme for an option to work a four-day week or nine-day fortnight in the Department.
- (d) awards of pensions are based on the length of reckonable service and pensionable pay at the time of retirement; full pension rights are available to all staff retiring at 60 years of age who have 40 years' reckonable service.