Day 180 - 31 Oct 95 - Page 36


     
     1        figure, if you like.
     2
     3   MR. MORRIS:  What is an AQ?
     4        A.  The European -----
     5
     6   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Do not let us get involved in that.
     7        A.  It is not a single 10 francs, wherever you work.  It is
     8        in that member state -- state specific.  But it is the same
     9        yardstick.
    10
    11   Q.   Right.
    12        A.  It is voluntary.  It is not statutory.
    13
    14   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  So the Council of Europe figure would vary
    15        from country to country, would it?
    16        A.  It would -- the formula would the same.
    17
    18   MR. MORRIS:  The percentage would be the same, but the actual
    19        amount would be different.
    20
    21   MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes, but the figure would be the same.  The
    22        pay -----
    23        A.  The formula would be identical.  But of course, given
    24        that Portugal's standard of living is much lower than
    25        West Germany's, you get a different actual figure in
    26        different states.
    27
    28        It is a move designed to recognise decency in terms of
    29        earnings, acceptability in terms of standard of living.  It
    30        is a unifying feature of Europe, if you like, in the
    31        economy.  If you translate it to Britain, you come out at
    32        £221.50 on an average -- this is New Earnings Survey,
    33        Government figures -- average nearly 38 hour week.  That is
    34        the average full-time week on which this figure is based.
    35
    36   MR. MORRIS:  Can I just ask you, you have said in 1984 there
    37        were some 7 million on low wages.  Would there be an
    38        equivalent figure for now, or would it be roughly the same,
    39        or what?
    40        A.  No.  The proportion has risen and, therefore, the
    41        number has risen in Britain.  As the commentators have
    42        said -----
    43
    44   Q.   Would you hazard a figure?
    45        A.  9 million is the -- 9.8 million is the current
    46        estimate.
    47
    48   MR. JUSTICE BELL: What is that, the United Kingdom?
    49        A.  In the UK, of the numbers earning below the Council of
    50        Europe decency threshold.  It is similar to the TUC model, 
    51        in the end.  It is one which is not statutory enforceable, 
    52        but is thrown into the public policy arena by many 
    53        commentators, unions, in the political arena, as a
    54        desirable minimum floor of earnings in the waged market.
    55
    56        Now, of course, it is above the Wages Council threshold,
    57        the 26 wages councils abolished in August 1983 -- sorry,
    58        1993 -- but they set a statutory floor in Britain for one
    59        tenth of the workforce, including catering.  Approximately
    60        2.3 million out of 24 million workers in Britain were

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