ABSOLUTE ABSURDITY

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1541, 10 September 1912, Page 4

ABSOLUTE ABSURDITY

TUG SHOPS AND OFFICES ACT, MASTER GROCERS' REQUESTS. CONI'IDKXCK IX TUB COURT. Tho difficulties which grocer's find in complying with Uio Shops hik! Offices Act in respect to the working of employees aflcr ordinary clchdk bour.-s were represented to tho Hon. \V. V. M[iv,!;.v in liis capucily by a dcpiit.-dion 110711 th« GrnoeiV (lay, my a drpnUitioti fru:n llio fiioo&ih' Af.O(;iulioii> in tlia various centres lliroiichout tins Dominion. 'J'li« dopiiUtion was iii(rodiic.'»l by Mr. A. If. .Myers, mtinbiT for Aiickhiiul Enst. Mr. lMj-(si-» wiid thu maslcr Rtw.aii hiid buftii ;-illiiif; in riiiifitrflicit for the. l;if-t U-.V! days mid hod imiiiiiinoiisly r.-w, Knistil (-orluiii of llic disabilities to which they were .subject under the Shoji, ami Offices Aiii. .'IVy uonld ;,>!: Ihut tain of the mal.tfrs now ri:!;iilati-il bv Iho Shop? and Offices Act shoiihl be apoin brouprlit iimler tho jurisdiction of the Arbitration Court. Afr. .1. 1!. Iliilfhii-.-on (Auckland) raid the last auifiidnieiit-' of the. Act wen; working -so injuriously that they cr.uld not do their biiMiic." and k»cp the law. It was peculiar to the unary hii«.inws Hint 73 per cent, of the order? had to be collected oml delivered, and I his, made it inipnK'-iblo that general condition l ! could 1)0 laid down uniler the Act for t!,iV f-pycial business. ]n tho Arbihai ion Court the partiM coiiUl (!i=cu=s the special conditions under which iheir trade was worked, and there decide upon workable conditions. . Xow it wns nwcssarj - , under (he Shops and Office? Act, to Iho permission ,of the inspector under the Labour Department for a carter to b? alkwed to remain out with his cart delivering pr.odn after six o'clock. If he came back after six o'clock, although ■ he was paid ti>ne and a half'for his extra work, the ina-ter Krocer employing him had broken the )iiw. At Christmas time also groeors had difficulty in dealing with a heavy rush of work. They conlil hot gel; extra tr.cn who would be reasonably efficient, and they had to apply to Iho inspector for permission to work their hands afbr hours. Builders mid other employers did riot require to apply for permission to get their men to come hack in the evenings. Mr. Jfassey: Ton don't object to the payment of overtime?

Mr. Hulchinson: Xot in the least. He added that what they did object to was having to get permission from the inspector, for often before it was known that permission would be required the Labour Department office was closed. The Arbitration Court would be fitting presently to make a fresh award for t'je grocery trade, and miles'; the Shops and Otticos Act were amended it would be necessary for grocers, in. order to comply with dip Act und the award, to restrict their business. Difficulties of the Trade. Mr. 1?. H. Scott (Wellington) said the grocery, trade was rather different from other trades governed by the Shops and Offices Act, in that so much of the goods supplied had to be delivered. It wns therefore somewhat difficult to keep track of what a enrter was doing. Permission to work overtime had to be obtained on the ground that tho work to be done wns special work, and it was apparently open to the inspector to refuse permission, on the ground that any particular duty was not, in his opinion, special work. In Wellington, for instance, the inspector had refused to allow grocers) to work lute on .Turio i (Juno 3 having been u holiday) to cope with accumulated business, on the ground that the work to 'bo done was not special work. -Mr. J. H. Hinton (Dunedin) said there ■wero special conditions attaching to the grocery business on the ground Unit it wns one which dealt in the necessaries of ,life. 1, At Christmas all (ho provision trades' wore exceptionally busy! "and grocers required to bu nblo to work their liaiids ■ exlra-'-tiniiy ur- they required more hands to do tho work. They liatl been told to get more hands, but, this was impossible, because men to bo .useful must ))o familiar with tho work to be done, and with the shop in which they were to do it. At such times when there was congestion in- the grocery trades, they did not ■ think it was right that inspectors should refuse them permission to work (heir hands. Hie.v were quite- ready to pay overtime. Under tho Factories Act no permission was necessary except in respect of • youths and female workers. Under previous awards of tho Arbitration Court so much wns this point recognised that not only was provision made for working overtime at. Christmas time, but the assistants agreed to come back without extra payment on three nights in tho week prior to Christmas. All tho present difficulties and hardships could bo removed by restoring to the Arbitration Court power to fix hours for which men might, bo worked in. particular trades. The grocers, for their part, were quite prepared to pay men for every hit of work they did.

Mr. J! Hall (Christehnrch), supporting the points raised by the other speakers, said that practically no difficulty had been experienced in arriving at the agreement-which was the basis of the last award in the grocery trade. He held, therefore, that there was no nerd for the regulation of hours under the Shops' nnd Offices Act. ■ ■

Mr. W. A. W. Grenfell, secretary of the Wellington Master Grocers' Association, said tho real -desire of .the deputation was to secure for the Arbitration Court again the discretionary power it formerly exercised of fixing, after inquiry into the working of a certain industry, such conditions of work ar. would suit the exigencies of the particular business in respect of which the dispute had .arisen. Now- grocers were working under a hard nnd . fast rule, made not to fit their particular business, but to fit nil businesses generally. The Arbitration Court, he urged, .wns better able after inquiry to adjust these matters in special coses than the Legislature dealing with matters en blue.

Prime Minister in Reply. Mr. Miis.wy, in reply, said he had boon very pleased to meet Mich a representative deputation, and to hear their view:; on the important points wissd. lie hml an opportunity a few weeks ago of hearing the views of tho other side. As Minister for' Lnhonr, it would be his duty to deal fairly with both parties, and to look after the interests of the third great party outside— tho public. It seemed to him there ought to be n certain elasticity in connection with Hie administration of the Act, for it tliero- were no elasticity there must be friction and trouble. So far as he could learn from tho information he had gathered from tho deputations and from the officers of the Labour Department, it'was almost impossible on certain occasions to comply strictly with tho Act. Employers who found it necessary to keep hands on late had to apply for- permission to the Labour Department. Very often the office was closed when the need'arose, and (hey had to go to the office and get (lift permission next morning. This seemed to him nn absolute absurdity. Tin; second point raised—that tho provisions of an award ol tho.Arbitration Court should not, be subject to the provisions of -tho Act—was a very important one. lie did not think legislation should interfere with awards, undpr the Arbitration Act, which Act, he was "hound to say, speaking generally, had given satisfaction to the great majority ot the people. Kinployers nnd employee!, went before the Coiirt often at groat* inconvenienco and expense, and then when tho Court had arrived at its decision along came legislation which did away with lhv> whole, (liing. Asa Minister of the Crown, ho could «iy (lint ho. was utterly opposed to thot.' lie wished to do what was right, and he did not think this was the wav to do if. He could not promise that the (3overnment would brinp down an amendment of the Shops and. Offices Act' this session, but if one were introduced at any time the peo'ple. concerned would have an opportunity of giving evidence before tho Labour Bills Committee. All the requests ot tho deputation would have ilio careful consideration of .himself and his colIcftßues.

Mr. Myers thanked (lie Prime Minister for the sympathetic and cordial reception he hml given to the deputation,