SHOP ASSISTANTS

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 286, 27 August 1920, Page 8

SHOP ASSISTANTS

HOURS AND HALF-HOLIDAYS

LEGISLATION SOUGHT

A revision of the Shops and Offices Act was the request in brief of a deputation representing the shop assistants organisations all over the Dominion... which waited on tho Minister of Labour (Sir William Hemes) yesterday. For several years past tho shop assistants have been asking for amendments of the Act in material respects. They want tost-of all the universal Saturday half-Mxlnj. Of rather more importance to them is the amendment they ask in the Act in aspect to the hours of business of shops Their chief concern is.that when they h«« applied to the Arbilrabflu Court for reduction of then' hours, the Court has always pointed to the A<* and has apparently considered that it has o power to over-ride the provisions of tho Act ling the hours within which shop mav remain open for business. the deputation asked that provision be madb by legislation to give,to the Arbitratjon Court power to fix shop Tionrs. A number of other matters were mentioned, but these wero the most important. 1 lie discussion was limited in scope by the faW that there are Bills before the Labour Bills Committee of the 1 ouso at tha present moment dealing with tie subjectmatter on which the depu a ion wished to talk, and the Minister did not think B °rXt,ie^. 7 assistan S stated bv Mr. B, D. Martin, of ChristchVch, and the deputation was sum rted by a number of members of Par u ment of all three parties in the House, "supports the claim of th.■ .hop •* BiiijinU to aome measure of relict, una f « Uiari<*bla features of lb|J*cJ« rnndn was that members stated tnat " ttievhad once been oppo«|d to He Rat rilav half-holiday they .had seen go d ran to change their mnids and End come to the conclusion that if it ■ere adopted it would work.admmMy. ltr,. Vniteh suggested to tlie jmiu.sui hat as Sour Sdslation had been allowed to lapse during tho war Here was Id for a thorough revision of it,.and fe a*cd tho'Minwfer to set up a on the commission. , , Sir William nerr.es' said he, hadhoe? .dad to hear the views, of the deputa ermiemJ to any particular course.mcir tt there was a considernUo majonty of the local-bodies in favour of the change, ho,would bo glad to make tho nranoVnl ' He looked to tho local bodies of local opinion mi tins matter and he was anxious thai if ho ~ made he oroposnl it should be--accent-"d by the 'House. He wm aware that eoha(n.cenan'c a tcl.ai. g ein.onin. on in the Houso as esewhero on his question. If anyone had few years ago a universal baturday halfhoidav he would have been sine of defeat? He fathered that the PalmerEton Borough Council had been sending wund circulars council and town board » tk.{J°W: ion to send an opinion w the Minister of Labour as to whether they wanted the Saturday half-holiday or not. Ho believed also .that before tho opening of the session v tho Hawera Borough Council had sent out circulars. Tho result of this inquiry showed' that there was *o considerable majority of the local bodies in favour of it. Most of \,he nouncils seemed to have thrown the circular into the waste paper basket. Howover, the question was- now really one for tho Government to decide, but Hither'k question for the people. It he could bo certain thail the Saturday half-holiday was; a popular proposal m the country and- that tho people wanted it, ho would be glad to bring it'forward. Mr. ■ Veiich had made a proposal that a commission should be set up to inquire iutc the Labour laws of vho Dominion, but if this inquiry wero to be taken now ill would mean that a lot of amendments necessary at the moment would bo set nsido until next session. . Some, legislation would bo b'-ought l . down during the present session. Whether the amendments- to the law would so as far as the Labour members wished he could not say, but lie hoped they would bo passed. All the legislation would come before tßie Labour Bills Committee and on that coinmitteo tho Labour members would have an opportunity of suggesting amendment. He asked that they should not try to ioin on to his Bills tho amendment's- that members of their party had introduced as separate Bills during the session. ■