§ Nick HarveyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the average annual salaries for NHS(a) speech therapists, (b) pharmacists and (c) clinical psychologists were for each of the past 10 years for (i) males and (ii) females; and if he will make a statement; [46584]
(2) how much money the NHS awarded to female speech therapists in the case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy; and if he will make a statement; [46582]
(3) how the formula to ascertain the amounts of monetary awards given to female speech therapists in the NHS case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy was determined; and if he will make a statement; [46579]
(4) how many women originally submitted equal pay claims in the NHS case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy; and if he will make a statement; [46581]
134W(5) of the women who received monetary awards from the NHS case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy, how many were awarded (a) £2,500–£5,000, (b) £5,000–£10,000, (c) £10,000–£20,000, (d) £20,000–00,000, (e) £30,000–£40,000, (f) £40,000–£50,000, (g) £50,000–£70,000 and (h) £70,000 or more; and if he will make a statement; [46580]
(6) how much the NHS spent on the case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy each from 1986 to 2000; and if he will make a statement; [46583]
(7) how much money the NHS spent employing (a) lawyers and (b) researchers working on the case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy each year from 1986 to 2000; and if he will make a statement; [46578]
(8) how many (a) lawyers and (b) researchers were employed by the NHS to work on the case against the MSF Union for Speech and Language Therapy in each year from 1986 to 2000; and if he will make a statement. [46577]
§ Mr. HuttonSome 1,800 speech and language therapists in the United Kingdom lodged equal pay claims from around 1985 onwards. Following decisions of the employment tribunal and subsequent out of court negotiations between the Department and Manufacturing and Services Federation, the settlement provided for 370 speech and language therapists to receive retrospective payments totalling £5.8 million1 broken down as follows:
Amount awarded from NHS £1 Number of women receiving payment1 <2,500 14 (a) 2,500–5,000 49 (b) 5,000–10,000 112 (c) 10,000–20,000 68 (d) 20,000–30,000 48 (e) 30,000–40,000 22 (f) 40,000–50,000 7 (g) 50,000–70,000 26 (h) 70,000 or more 0 1 All figures are net (less tax, national insurance and pension contributions) and include interest. There may be a personal tax liability on the interest. All figures exclude 24 claims lodged in Scotland in 1980s and receiving payments. The retrospective payments were based on (i) the decisions of the employment tribunal and findings of independent experts (this applies to the 1980s cases only), (ii) an assessment of the job weight carried out by work assessment experts, (iii) a formula agreed by negotiators to provide a reasonable and fair payment and (iv) the length of relevant claim.
Employers and the Secretary of State were both named as Respondents and the claims were defended centrally on behalf of employers and Secretary of State to minimise costs. The following table shows the estimated total costs to the national health service involved in defending the cases, including legal and research costs (which it is not possible to identify separately). These are the best available estimates but should be treated with caution. A very few employers sought and paid for separate legal and other advice locally.
135W
£000 Year Cost 1986–97 760 1997–98 440 1998–99 192 1999–2000 9 Two barristers and their juniors were retained by the Treasury Solicitor to represent employers and the Secretary of State to provide legal services as necessary over the lifetime of the cases. It is not possible to pinpoint their input for each year from 1986 to 2000. Three researchers were engaged for several days in 1995 at a total cost of approximately £4,000. A firm of consultants was engaged to assess the work in the 20 lead cases and several analysts shared the assessments.
Average salary and total earnings by sex in 1998. 1999 and 2000 for clinical psychologists, pharmacists, and speech and language therapists £ 1998 1999 2000 Staff group Average salary Average earnings Average salary Average earnings Average salary Average earnings Speech and language therapists Male 19,800 20,600 20,100 20,800 21,400 22,100 Female 19,800 20,400 20,200 20,900 21,200 21,900 Clinical psychologists Male 31,200 31,700 31,700 32,400 33,800 34,500 Female 23,800 24,400 24,100 24,800 26,100 26,800 Pharmacists Male 27,600 28,500 27,800 28,600 29,100 31,400 Female 23,600 24,300 24,000 25,000 25,800 27,900 Note:
All figures are rounded to the nearest £100.
Source:
Department of Health's August 1998, 1999 and 2000 Earnings Surveys.
The Earnings Survey
The earnings survey is based on payroll data for August of the appropriate year. It covers about half of the NHS trusts in England. It is taken for NHS organisations which use the standard payroll system (SPS), and as such the sample may change from year to year. There is some unevenness in the geographical spread of the organisations included in the survey, but the overall results are broadly representative of all regions and different types of staff. Health authority staff were included for the first time in 2000. Independent contractors (including GPs and their staff) were not included in any of the surveys.
Gross earnings data, i.e. before any deductions, were collected from payroll records. Annual basic salary was read directly from payroll records, and annual equivalent total earnings were calculated using all payments made during August, including e.g. overtime, London weighting, special duty enhancements and other leads/ allowances, and multiplying by 12. Average pay figures were calculated by dividing total salaries/earnings by total whole time equivalents.