HC Deb 18 May 1998 vol 312 cc280-2W
Mr. Hancock

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how much money he has allocated to staffing in the Portsmouth District Employment Service to cover the implementation and future costs of(a) the New Deal and (b) the jobseeker's allowance. [41934]

Mr. Alan Howarth

Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its Chief Executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Leigh Lewis to Mr. Mike Hancock, dated 18 May 1998: As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State for Education and Employment has asked me to reply direct to your question concerning how much money has been allocated to staffing in the Portsmouth District of the Employment Service to cover the implementation and future costs of (a) the New Deal and (b) the Jobseeker's Allowance. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency. Funding for the New Deal essentially follows the client with entitlement to funding for staffing, staff expenses and programme costs being based on the actual numbers entering the different stages of the programme. However, assumptions have been made as to the likely uptake of New Deal places and the resulting entitlement to funds. The Portsmouth District is covered by two delivery units for New Deal. For the Isle of Wight unit an allocation of £123,200 has been identified for 1998/9 and for the remainder, known as Portsmouth/South East Hampshire, an allocation of £315,700 has been identified for the year. These figures include small amounts for expenditure, outside of salary costs, to cover directly related expenses, such as staff travel costs. For its other activities, the Portsmouth District of the Employment Service has been allocated £3.27m for 1998/9 salary costs, based on an allocation of 203.1 staff units. This has been calculated by a formula which relates staffing to expected business volumes. Within this total, 129.3 staff units relate to the Jobseeker's Allowance. I hope this is helpful.

Mr. Hancock

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will assess the risk to employees' health from occupational stress within the Portsmouth District Employment Service. [41935]

Mr. Alan Howarth

Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its Chief Executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Leigh Lewis to Mr. Mike Hancock, dated 18 May 1998: As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State for Education and Employment has asked me to reply direct to your question which asks whether we will assess the risk to employees' health from occupational stress within the Portsmouth District of the Employment Service. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency. It may be helpful if I explain that we have developed our own guidance to staff and managers on dealing with stress which is set out in a document entitled 'The ES and You; A Guide for Managers'. This is based on the Health and Safety Executive's own good practice recommendations, and is being followed in Portsmouth and other Employment Service Districts. In summary, we have followed the HSE's recommendations that: Managers have guidance which enables them to understand the issues and manage them appropriately. We also have a clear policy stating that the Employment Service will not tolerate harassment or bullying in any form, and systems for dealing with it including a 'Hotline' telephone service. Individuals have clear roles, responsibilities and objectives; Sickness absence is monitored regularly and staff attitudes are periodically surveyed—our most recent Staff Attitude Survey in fact shows a reduction in the number of staff saying they feel under uncomfortable pressure at work; We have access to professional Occupational Health Service (OHSA Ltd) to advise on individual cases; All staff have individual access to an Employee Assistance Service. Where appropriate managers can suggest, but not insist, that staff seek help through this service. Should it become apparent that particular members of staff are suffering from stress, there are a range of measures available to deal with such problems. These include reviewing objectives, changing duties and providing additional training or support. As well as general monitoring of staff absence by managers as a routine part of their job, and action taken in individual cases to ease an individual's return to work, the Portsmouth District has recently worked with the Employment Service's Regional Psychologist to identify the causes of stress at Cosham Jobcentre. I hope this is helpful.