HC Deb 13 February 2004 vol 418 cc307-8W
Paul Holmes

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many employees have been employed on 13-week casual appointments in Jobcentre and JobcentrePlus offices in(a) the United Kingdom and (b) each region in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement; [152672]

(2) how many JobcentrePlus staff on 13-week casual contracts were employed on these contracts for (a) the second time, (b) the third time and (c) more than the third time in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [152673]

Mr. Browne

The information is not available and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Hancock

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what functions are carried out by casual staff employed in offices in the South East Region; what training they receive; and what the cost of such training was in the last year for which figures are available. [151529]

Maria Eagle

The Department employs casual staff for a number of reasons, for example, to help manage peaks of work and to aid release of permanent staff for training and preparation for major business change. Information on the specific duties carried out by casual staff is not available.

The Learning and Development provided for casual staff varies according to the job role and work undertaken by the individual. For example, those dealing with customers receive training linked to serving customers, keeping safe, equal opportunities, data protection and interviewing skills. More informal training includes working with, and observing more experienced colleagues and coaching from subject experts and line managers. In addition, many new staff have a buddy or mentor.

Information on the cost of training for casual staff is not available.