THE FACTORIES BILL.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 22 August 1901, Page 3

THE FACTORIES BILL.

A Vigorous Protest against the Measure.

(our parliamentary eecoetbb.)

Wellington This Day. A petition from members of the boot and shoe and leather trades of Auckland, against the Factories Bill was presented to the House by Mr Fowlds yesterday. The petition sets out that at a meeting of the trades it was decided to protest against the Bill, because it would upset existing arrangements between employers and employees, and would act detrimentally to the interests of both parties. That if it was passed the recent award of the Arbitration Court would be rendered useless.

That the reduction of the working hours from 48 to 44 hours a week, means a loss of about 200 working hours per annum. That owing to the flooding of our market with a large quartity of imported goods, local factories have been compelled to reduce the margin of profits to a minimum and that that margin would be swallowed up if the bill became law. That many factories would be forced to consider the advisability of importing their goods instead of manufacturing them which would mean a large reduction of hands, or the closing down of the factories altogether. Finally they express the belief that it is in the best interests of the community that the Bill be allowed to drop. Tip to the present something like sixty witnesses have given evidence before the Labor Bills Committee in opposition to the Factories Bill. Their evidence is almost exclusively directed against clauses 18 (pertaining to hours of work) 19 (conditions of overtime) and 30, 31 and 32 (holidays to be observed in factories). A witness representing Bootmakers Union of Christchurch is to be examined to-morrow and the committee will then adjourn till Wednesday next when the taking of evidence with respect to the Bill will be concluded.