TALKATIVE AND DISOBEDIENT

Evening Star, Issue 18335, 24 July 1923, Page 6

TALKATIVE AND DISOBEDIENT

APPRENTICES’ DISMISSAL ( JUSTIFIED. DISCIPLINE UNDERMINED. In (ho Magistrate's Court to-day the Inspector of Awards (Mr G. H. Ligbtfoot) claimed from Elsinore, Ltd., £lO as a penalty for alleged breach of. the _tailorcss cs’ award in (lie ease of each of three apprentices. Mr Hay (instructed by Aslin and Brown) appeared for defendants. Air Light foot said that this was a. case, in ■which three dressmakers’ apprentices were dismissed without, tho department considered, reasonable cause. Tho most that could ho said about tho girls was that they were young, and that a certain amount of chattering went on. 'i ho discipline was not always strict. ihc culminating act was when the fire brigade went by one day, and all hands rushed to Iho windows, in consequence of this, and of the talking, these girls -were given a week’s notice. There were sir: •joarnojwomcn and fourteen apprentices in the factory at the rime, and it would seem that tho secret was that trade was slack, and it was deemed expedient to get rid of some of tho apprentices as well as some of the journeywomon. There, had been nothing more serious than youthful peccadilloes that would have been adequately met by a talking to. ... Inspector King said ho made inquiries concerning the dismissal of four apprentices. In one case the dismissal bad been, in witness’s opinion, justified, but in the other three it Ind not. Mrs Sutherland (tho manageress) explained tho fire engine episode, and said that seieral or the gim were disobedient She took exception to them looking up and not proceeding with their work when she entered the room. Miss Fh.ilp (head of the work room) hud also told him about Ibo the engines. To Mr Hay He understood the offences to have been repeated talking., 'lho discipline was extremely poor, it seemed, owing to the preponderance of apprentices. Alena Walker (aged seventeen) said she was running messages for two out of tho three years sho had been at Elsinore s. She always stopped talking when spoke to, but went on again. Sho had never treated Airs Sutherland or Miss Philpwith any disrespect. Nearly all the girls ran to tho window when the fire engine wont by on that day. ‘To Air Hay; She had been warned repeatedly about talking, but had not wasted nnv time because of talking. Mrs Sutherland had told her that she would not keep her. Margaret Philp, head of (lie work room, said tho three girls concerned we no not good workers. In her experience she had not had charge of such noisy girls as there were, in this room. About sixteen of the twenty went to >he window on the day of tho fire engine passing. On one occasion the girl Walker had talked all day till 3 o’clock, when witness spoke to her. The girl said: “Sing hymns,” and witness replied that there was no necessity for hymns; work was what was needed. Witness did not report tho matters to Airs Sutherland; she dul not care .about carrying tales. To Mr IT vv: Witness had warned the girls, end bad come in on the day mentioned and found them at the window.. To the Magistrate: The older girls in the room talked, hut did not neglect their work.

Witness .id(led that, she could not understand tire young people, of to-daylliev seemed to have been brought op without •any knowlothe of the meaning of the word “obev.”

Mr Hav said that discipline had become undermined,- and something had to ho done to,restore it These girls had been dismissed for disobedience. Elsie Sutherland, manageress of Elsinore, Ltd., said that the “carpeting” following tbo fire engine episode resulted in four being dismissed—one joumeyw-omnn and tbo three apprentices. The reason for tbo dismissal was not solely tbo rushing to the window, but for repealed disobedience, as reported by Miss Pliilp. To Mr Lighlfoot: Just after this she had put off some of tier journeywomen, but this wan only a temporary measure. The girl Walker'had run messages week about"with another girl, so had not been really-two years thus employed. The Magistrate said that the evidence showed that the girls had b -on persistentlv disobedient— they bad, indeed, honestly admited as much. The employers had been justified in dismissing them. Judgment would be for defendant. No costs were allowed.