HOURS IN LAUNDRIES.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 675, 27 November 1909, Page 13

HOURS IN LAUNDRIES.

PROTECTION AGAINST CHINESE.

EFFECT OF NEW PEOPOSALS. . To. cope with . the Chineso laundry question is the object of' tho, principal portion ol tho Hon. J. A. Millar's- Factories Amendment Bill, which''is tho outcome of representations made ~b y . European laundry: proprietors throughout V tho Dominion... Tho Chinese, are not'montioned in tho Bill, and all tho provisions apply to Eniopean and Chinese laundries, alike. . From ; inquiries made by a' Dominion reporter,: it nevertheless appears'. that tho' rieiv I>r6posals,\while making some difference to tho European laundries, will .affect the .' Chinese very, much more. ■' ■'It . has' .beon; claimed that' the steam • laundries, which, ace all owned ;by Europeans, and operated mainly by female. labour, are' placed disadvantage in competition ; with the Orientals, ■ becauso , of. the law limiting 1 tha hours of . the female workers to 45 a week. The Chineso' laundry , workers 'are all males, ; and not only has there been no legal restriction: on the hours of men working in laundries/ but the Chineso usually claim- to. bo partners, instead of carrying •on as. employer and employee. -Accordingly, the Chinese -laundries are open every evening,-and: late .-.on- Saturday mghtsj "and their European- competitors; have strongly complained of this as uufair'rivalry. The. Bill, .if ;passod,\ will alter all that. It makes the 'maximum working day for ,males over J6 ,in laundries 8J hours, and the maximum. hours-in any one- week 48. 'The inten--tion evidently; is-that no' plea, of partnership shall '. avail' against , this restriction, for; it. is clearly laid' down that the ''provisions' as.: to uouts of labour; shall apply "in erery laundry in which two or; mote porsons v (whether em-, ployee's ;or ■ • not), : are., engaged.',' •: Another restriction of . the ) same wido application' is that "no person" shall do laundry work in a laundrjr \6ctweeri.: the hours of 7 p.m. and 7.45':a.m. This, together - with , the. Siting' of a' maximum 1, length-of:work a - day, 'will doubtless,'mean, among other things, .tnat , :tho > >young -man who is in the habit of looking •in at. the Chinaman's to get'his Sunday shirt when going homo after; the 'oyster saloons .arc. closed ■on .Satur-; day. 1 night will hive -to make a slight rearrangement'of his habits, for; the laundry .will not. be,'open.'at' that hour. ' The' partnership arrangement will enable the payment of extra rates for overtime to be avoided, but' as. the number ,of hours of overtime . that may .be ■worked" is to be strictly 'limited this aavantage to the Chinese, as/compared = with.:their European rivals, will not be great.. > . At tho present time there are between 20 and 30 .'men . employed,' in European laundries in and about Wellington.-,They'/.usually.-\woik: 48. or, 49 hours .a weok. and in sopie laundries .they start at 745' a.m. .The hours will, therefore,' be .somewhat ciirtailcd\by-tho .new-measure.. .Their, employers,, in like,., manner, will have their hours restricted,';but as :fa'r: as. could, be gath■ered .from thej inquiries ',which .were made, yesterday, . they will • put up. with any. incoiiveni■enco'.,tbnt ..this provision;'may. oiitdil,; for..the sake of . protection against tho'. Chineso/ - -The men, in ,thq:. ! steam, laundries ..run the Vashirig, machines,' and ■ do/any other heavy ; work, whilo tho girls' (who' ate limited to .45; hours a week) carry out ; all, the :lighter'operations. ' ! .