JUNIOR AND FEMALE WAGES

Chronicle (Levin), 16 August 1947, Page 6

JUNIOR AND FEMALE WAGES

Dealing with junior male and junior female wage rates the Court proposes in amending the rates in awards -and industrial agreements to follow broadiy the practice it adopted in 1945, having regard, of course, to the piovisions of the Factories Act 1946 and to any increases which may have been made to the rates of remuneration in each award and the industrial agreement since March 17, 1945. The Court also proposes in amending awards and industrial agreements to increase the rates of remuneration of adult female workers Ijroadlv by such amount as would bring them to a ievel of approximately 10s per week above the gross rates provided for in the amendments which followed the 1945 [iiihduiitbmehth ' :and ' :which in most cases operated from April 1, 1945. It was to be clearly understood that this pronouneement was not in itself a general wage order and therefore had no operative effect. It wras merely an indication of the rates of wages up to which the rates preseribed for skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers in a certain number of awards and industrial agreements were likely to be broughf by means of individual agreements. The pronouneement did not mean that a general increase of 3d an hour would be granted in all awards and agreements. The object of the recent

.. I amendments to the regulations was tne removal of disparities wl:i«h had arisen between the rates y)f rem'uuTation of various classes of workers. Aflat increase to all workers •'. u' l not remove the disparities but tuerely per petuate them. Any amendmeiUs niade to awards and agreements would. ot course, have uo lega! effect rm the rates of remuneration of those walker* v.lio were alreadv receiving rates in exeess

j of the new rates preseribed in the amendments.