H.—ll

IV

Under the Shop and Offices Act there have been 119 convictions, and 8 cases dismissed (see "Legal Decisions" published in the Report). Thirty-six cases were necessitated under the gazetted requisitions of different trades. The more interesting matters dealt with were as follows: A restaurant company was fined for employing waitresses for excessive hours. (June, 1906.) A restaurant-keeper was fined for not giving a weekly half-holiday to his assistants. It was ieoided that an award of the Arbitration Court is subject to the provisions of the Act, except where otherwise distinctly excepted. (July, 1906.) Tobacconist case, in which the question "Who is a tobacconist'" was raised, and it was decided'that grocers, storekeepers, hotelkeepers, (fee, who sell tobacco are not tobacconists. (June, 1906.) .Non-naturalised Chinese tiosing their shops at the hour (9 p.m.) gazetted as closing-time. The defence was that defendants were fruiterers, and not grocers, so were not bound by grocers' closing-time; also that as Chinese were not allowed to sign the requisition as to closing-hours they were not bound to close. The Chinese were convicted and fined. (August, 1906.) A case was heard against shopkeepers who had closed but not locked their doors on halfholiday, and defendants were fined. (September, 1906.) Auctioneers' assistants were held to be shop-assistants if they sell goods otherwise than at auctions. (January, 1907.) For decision on the question of the closing of shops under requisition from shopkeepers, and the hours of assistants working in such shops, see September, 1906. The following table shows the number of shops, assistants, &c, in each of the four cities and in each industrial district (excluding the four cities): —

The Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. The annual returns are made up by the industrial unions on the 31st December of each year. At that date in 1906 the numbers of members were as follows: — December, 1905, 113 employers' unions, with 3,276 members. 1906, 109 ~ ~ 3,337 1905, 261 workers' unions, ~ 29,869 1906, 274 ~ .- 34,978 This shows a decrease of 4 employers' unions, with an increase of 61 members, and an increase of 13 workers' unions, with 5,109 members, during the year. The total number of cases presented under the Act was 406, of which 359 were won, 38 dismissed, and the other 9 withdrawn. A list of these cases will be found in the tables attached to this report The following matters disposed of by the Court are of special interest: — A case brought by the New Zealand Federated Tailoresses to extend the award obtaining in Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago to the Auckland District on the ground that the southern workers could not successfully compete with those of the North while difference in the wage exists. The Court did not see its way to interfere, and refused the application. ("Book of Awards," Vol. vii, page 665.)

, _, Number of Persons Number of Shops. including Ocou; Districts. Without I With To(a , Male8 Females. Assistants. Assistants.! .mployed, ! lie rs. during the Y Total Wai <ea fear. iaid Females. Total. I Auckland (City) 521 625 1,146 2,732, 1,022 Wellington (City) ... 638 548 1,186 2,556 761 Christchurch (City) ... i 704 575 1,279 3,002 938 Dunedin (City) ... 666 493 1,159 j 2,257 799 Northern ... ... 583 721 1,304 2,454 503 Taranaki 182 283 465 940 211 Wellington 671 815 1,486 3,302 806 Marlborough ... 45 I 87 132 281 61 Nelson L20 ' 136 256 525 133 Westland 245 224 469 ! 878 203 Canterbury ... ... 356 411 767 1,648 348 Otago and Southland ... 487 591 1,078 { 2,237 544 3,754 I 3,317 ! 3,940 3,056 2,957 1,151 4,108 342 658 1,081 1,996 2,781 £ 204,545 186,449 217,762 165,898 121,104 47,070 210,752 13,243 32,667 49,930 108,895 124,058 5,218 5,509 ' 10,727 22,812 6,329 i 29,141 1,482,373