HC Deb 25 February 2002 vol 380 cc845-7W
Dr. Cable

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment has been made of the effect of the working time directive on her Department's employees; how many employees are working in excess of 48 hours per week; what steps she is taking to reduce this number; and if she will make a statement. [35890]

Ms Rosie Winterton

Since the working time directive was introduced we have sought to reduce the number of staff working in excess of 48 hours a week (by adjusting working hours or re-designing jobs) to an absolute minimum. Currently, of all the staff in the Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies (the Court Service and Public Guardianship Office), around 30 staff regularly work in excess of 48 hours on a voluntary basis. They are principally based in the private offices and press office. Some other staff may work in excess of 48 hours from time-to-time to cover peaks of work or because their work is of a cyclical nature.

Dr. Cable

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many people are employed in her Department on a job share contract; and what percentage of vacant positions was advertised on this basis in the last 12 months. [35364]

Ms Rosie Winterton

2,291 staff currently work reduced hours in LCD headquarters, the Court Service and the Public Guardianship Office, a large proportion of whom are engaged on a job-share or job-split arrangement.

Job-sharing is only one of a number of alternative and flexible working patterns that employees are welcome to take up under the Department's work-life balance policies. The flexibility of the pattern is decided in conjunction with local management to suit an individual's need and the needs of their work.

95 per cent. of all vacancies advertised over the past 12 months have been suitable for job-sharing. The expectation is that jobs will be available for job-sharing unless line managers can justify otherwise.

Dr. Cable

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many cases of work-related stress have been reported in her Department; how much compensation has been paid to employees; how many work days have been lost due to work-related stress, and at what cost; what procedures have been put in place to reduce work-related stress, and at what cost, in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement. [35930]

Ms Rosie Winterton

Detailed sick absence statistics are derived from the recording of medical and self-certificates, which are completed by staff or their

GPs. While certain illnesses, such as "depression", "anxiety", "general debility" and even "stress" may be indicated on certificates, it is not possible to determine levels of "work-related stress". Consequently, we have no details on the number of working days lost due to work-related stress or the cost to the Department.

However, we know from recent staff attitude surveys and an audit conducted in 1995 that undue stress at work is a problem for a small minority. To deal with this we have introduced a range of stress management courses for both managers and non-managers. Our in-house welfare service is fully trained, and ideally placed, to deal with issues involving work-related stress.

Both the Court Service and LCD headquarters also introduced new work-life balance policies during 2001, enabling staff to adopt more effective working patterns to better balance their work and home life.

We have a legal obligation to provide a safe working environment for all our staff and are committed to meeting targets for reducing the number of working days lost generally to work related injuries and illnesses arising from the Government's Revitalising Health and Safety initiative.