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227. Do you not consider, in trades such as yours, that the Arbitration and Conciliation Act is quite sufficient ?— Mr. James Gebig examined. (No. 39.) 228. The Chairman,'] Are you deputed by the Federated Council of New Zealand Builders and Contractors' Association, Christchurch, to give evidence on this Bill before the Committee, Mr. Greig?—Yes. 229. Will you kindly give us your views, then, as to how this-Act will affect the builders and contractors? —Well, to start with, in clause 2, subsection (1), "factory " means " any building, enclosure, or place in which two or more persons are employed, directly or indirectly, in any handicraft, or in preparing or manufacturing goods for trade or sale, and includes (whatever the number of persons employed therein) every bakehouse (meaning thereby any building or place in which any article of food is baked for sale for human consumption), and also every building, enclosure, or place in which steam or other mechanical power or appliance is used for the purpose of preparing or manufacturing goods for trade or sale, or packing them for transit," &c. If that constitutes a factory Ido not see how we could possibly comply with that in the building trade. A builder may perhaps have made an improvised place where he is doing work, or he may be seeing to a room, papering it, or doing some sanitary work, and he must go and register that place as a factory. He must register it and submit his work to the Inspector, and the Inspector must examine it. Hitherto the authorities have never troubled the builders to register their buildings, but under this Bill we are informed that it will be so. Of course, if we are exempt, then there is no need to thresh that point out before the Committee. We want to point out that if this Bill is passed it would be impossible for us to comply with it. Take a building in the course of erection for three years : The Act provides for certain work at certain periods, such as whitewashing. People might object to have their walls, and say, perhaps, those of a cathedral, whitewashed. The building trade could not comply with the Bill, and if it was put into operation we would object to it. If it is not put into operation, then it is all right. In passing on to clause 6, that bears on the same subject; the one clause hangs on the other. In "passing on then to clauses 10 and 11 —viz., "Except as hereinafter provided, it shall not be lawful for any person to occupy or use as a factory any building, enclosure, or place unless the same is duly registered as a factory under this Act. Every occupier of a factory who commits a breach of this section is liable to a penalty not exceeding five pounds for every day during which the factory is unregistered. The application for registration shall be made in writing in the prescribed form to the Inspector, by or on behalf of the occupier or intending occupier, and shall specify the name and situation of the intended factory ; the nature of the work to be carried on therein, and of the motivepower (if any) to be used therein ; the maximum number of persons to be employed therein; the full names of the occupier or intended occupier thereof ; the name or style under which the business of the factory is to be carried on ; and such other particulars as are prescribed. In addition to his application, the applicant shall also deliver to the Inspector a sketch-plan of the intended factory, to the Inspector's satisfaction. In any case where a satisfactory plan has been delivered to the Inspector in connection with any previous application for registration of the same factory, it shall be sufficient if, in lieu of delivering a fresh plan, the applicant refers the Inspector to the previous one." They practically apply to us the same as the previous clauses. For instance,, the number of persons and the class of work that they were doing. You could not very well keep a record of what a painter or a carpenter or a plumber was doing in the morning where there are a lot of men and subcontractors are employed. A builder would very probably be a contractor, and might have half a subcontractors, and he could not keep a list of all the subcontractors' men and what they are doing on that building and on the buildings in course of erection, perhaps scattered all over the city. Ido not think we can possibly comply with that as far as the building trade is concerned. It would be impossible ;we could not control other people's men who were not in our employ. Then, take clause, 12—viz., "As soon as practicable after receipt of the application the Inspector shall examine the intended factory in order to satisfy himself that it is suitable for the purpose for which it is to be used, and also that it is in accordance with the plan." The same delay would occur there again. The Inspector would have to come round to inspect the job and pass the place before we did it. Say a fire had taken place and a builder was sent along to patch up the place, the job could not wait for the Inspector's permit in order to allow the builder to repair the floors and put on a roof. That is one reason why we think that it would be impossible for us to comply with that clause of the Act. Clause 13—viz., "If the Inspector is of opinion that the intended factory or the plan thereof is defective in any respect, he shall, by requisition in writing served on the applicant, specify the defects, and inform him that the intended factory will not be registered until the defects are remedied to the Inspector's satisfaction. If the applicant is dissatisfied with the requirements of the Inspector as specified in such requisition, he may appeal to the local authority, whose decision shall be final. With respect to such requisition and appeal, the provisions of section fifty-nine hereof shall, mutatis mutandis, apply in like manner as if the applicant were the occupier of a factory and the local authority were the Magistrate. If, having due regard to the local authority's decision on any such appeal, the Inspector is satisfied that the requirements of this Act in respect to the intended factory have been duly complied with, he shall, upon payment of the registration-fee as hereinafter provided, register the factory, and issue to the applicant a certificate of registration." And clause 15—viz., "In any case where, during the currency of the registration, the number of persons employed in the factory is so increased as to require a larger registration-fee, the occupier of the factory shall within seven days thereafter give written notice to the Inspector, and pay the difference in value between the registration-fee already, paid and the fee payable on such increased number." The same thing applies in these clauses : " the number of men employed." The builders are different from any one else. They do not generally keep a record of all their men all the year round. This week they may have twenty men, and next week only two. Sometimes the builders have no employes at all. And