§ Mr. Nigel GriffithsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) by what percentage the pay of(a) grade 7 civil servants and (b) grade 5 civil servants would need to rise to equal the median pay levels of comparable private sector jobs;
(2) what was the outcome of the recent exercise on comparisons of senior Civil Service pay levels with the private sector.
§ Mr. Ryder[holding answer 6 November 1989]: This year's pay negotiations for civil servants at grades 5 to 7 were informed by a survey of data on private sector pay levels and benefits for comparable jobs. The results of the survey are confidential to the parties and cannot therefore be released.
§ Mr. Nigel GriffithsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will raise the pay levels of civil servants to match those of comparable jobs in the private sector;
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§ Mr. Norman LamontThe percentage growth in the volume of imports in each year from 1984 is as follows:
(2) what assessment he has made of the effect on morale of the comparative levels of pay in the Civil Service and the private sector;
(3) when he next intends to undertake a comparison of private sector pay levels against Civil Service pay levels.
§ Mr. Ryder[holding answer 6 November 1989]: The longer term pay determination arrangements under the new flexible pay agreements, now covering nearly all civil servants, provide for surveys of private sector pay levels every four years. The appropriate data on pay for comparable jobs in the private sector are taken into account together with other factors, such as affordability, recruitment and retention patterns etc., in each of the negotiations about pay increases for civil servants. Morale can be influenced by many factors, one of which may be pay. As far as pay is concerned, all the recent settlements under the new flexible pay agreements have been overwhelmingly accepted by staff.