HOUSEMAIDS AND BARS

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 142, 20 June 1927, Page 10

HOUSEMAIDS AND BARS

THE COURT'S RULING

A housemaid who scrubs out the house bar of an hotel is not to be deemed a "general hand" under the Licensed Hotels Employees' Award, according to an interpretation given by the Arbitration Court. The case arose from a request by the Inspector of Awards in Wellington for an interpretation of the clause in the award, which states that' a general hand may bo employed in any capacity desired- by his or her employer.

In his judgment, Mr. Justice Frazer says:—"The Court has already held that it is not part of a 'housemaid's, duty to scrub out the public bar of an, hotel. Her work is in connection with: the house, and the public bar may b<> likened to a shop attached to th& house. There is some difficulty in defining a 'house bar ' for the purposes of the award. In some cases the house bur is a mere cupboard or locker, of a small room with a slide opening on to a passage. Lodccers and the public are not admitted, and the so-called house bar. is merely a place from which lj.q. uor is dispensed. There is nothing objectionable in the scrubbing of sucli a place, and the Court sees no reason vVhy it should not be performed by a housemaid. In other cases, the house bur is fitted up in the same manner as a public bar, and persons other than the staff are admitted for the purpose of consuming liquor. In the opinion of the Court, such a house bar is, for tlie purposes of the award, indistinguishable from a public bar, and it is not -part of a >-usemaid'a duty to scrub it; out."