QUESTION OF HOURS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 281, 28 November 1938, Page 8

QUESTION OF HOURS.

INVOLVED CONSIDERATIONS. ARRITRATION COURT RULING. The question of what hours would constitute an ordinary week's work for drivers employed in connection with the business of a wool store, and also of a business partly a wool store and partly j a wholesale general store, was the ' subject of an opinion delivered from the Arbitration Court by Mr. Justice O'Kegan to-day. The circumstances which led to an interpretation of the award being sought were outlined in the explanatory part of the judgment. Involved considerations affecting clerical workers as well as drivers were set out in the explanatory part of the award as being the questions on which the interpretation \va« required. Another was the uiatter of hours for 4 drivers employed in the business of a

wool store and also of part wool store and part wholesale general store. The Court ruled that the hrrtirs of work for drivers in the circumstances act out were those prescribed by the respective awards without any regard to any qualifying provisions permitting extended hours. Thus, where an award prescribed a working week of 40 hours, that is, the "less number of hours contemplated by a certain clause of the Drivers' Award, no regard can be liad to any provision permitting any worker in certain cases to be employed in excess of 40 hours. It was stated that this was a majority judgment. Mr. W. Cecil Prime, employer*' representative, not concurring in the judgment. A memorandum stated that t/ho question raised bv the application for an interpretation of the award on which nn opinion had been given was not contemplated by the parties when the current Drivers' Award was under consideration. In view of the difficulties which might arise, the Court thought that the parties might well consider the propriety of coming to a working arrangement whereby unforeseen hardship might be avoided.