OPPRESSION BY OVER WORK.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1713, 16 November 1887, Page 2

OPPRESSION BY OVER WORK.

TO THB EDITOR .

Sir — Some of the young women employed aa milliners and sempstresses In thin town are m rather a hard ouo. The hardships to whloh they are sab j acted oall for a remedy, and that sure and soon. They dare not themselves complain to their employers, foe they know they would be paid off and others obtained In their places. The hours of labor are from 9 a.m, to 6 p.m., with an hoar for dinner. In justice, no more should ba required of them. But what la the actual sta'.e of the case? The hours hare frequently of late been 9 to 9, or even 8 to 9, that Is twelve and even thirteen houra. The dinner hour has been encroached upon, and at a late hoar of the evening the weary sempstress has to find her way home m the dark. It would ba hard lines even if they lived next door to their place of business, but if they have a distance to travel this implies rising very muoh earlier m the morning and reaching home later at night than they are bound to do. Besides, what time cm they have for any other duties when thus illegally detained, From Monday morning till late on Saturday night they will have wrought three honrs extra every day m times of pressure. All this without extra pay, to the injarj of their own health, and to the anxiety and inconvenience of relatives and friends who are all made to suffer by thls'treatment, The whole thing is bo wrong and lDjarlous m many ways that It has for years past been the subject of legislation. It Is providti against In "Bradshaw's Act. 11 and conviction! have frequently bees obtained under It. Why it should b* tolerated m Aahburton I do not know. It must be unknown to the authorities ; but what shall be said of those employers who knowingly break the law of the land for their own aggrandisement, and think they can do bo with impunity because their victims are helpless to resent the oppression, or too weak to defend them* selves. It will not do to pooh pooh this matter or meet those statements with SArcaem or rldloule They can be substantiated and proved ; and the sooner the matter is remedied, or else the oppressors expoqed the better. When a holiday comes round, every hour of it has already been worked for by this cruel and oppressive system. There la much more that might be said but it is surely enough to point out that the law is being violated and when that ia the oaae all the evils of injury to health, sowing the seeds of disease, and other abuses whloh It was intended to guard against, have leave to operate unhindered. Hoping this subjeot will reoeive more justice at other hands,

I am, eto, Liberator. According to the Aot the police m«y enter the work rooms afte? hours, and lnqulrs lato matters. It does not eeem to have been done here— Why not ?