A WEEK'S NOTICE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15513, 21 January 1914, Page 10

A WEEK'S NOTICE.

INTERPRETATION OF AWARD.

RULING BY JUDGE SIM.

[BY TELEGRAPH. OWN

Wanganui, Tuesday. A matter of some importance to drivers as well as to employers has just been determined by Mr. Justice Sim. The inspector of awards for this district applied some time ago for an interpretation of clauses of the Wanganui drivers' award. The clauses were: —"The minimum wages for drivers shall be as - follows: —For those driving and attending to one horse, £2 2s per week; for those driving and attending to two or more horses, £2 12s per week; no deduction shall be made from such wages for any cause, save for time lost through the worker's own default or sickness." The question asked by the inspector was: " Where a driver has been dismissed and the week's notice terminates other than at the end of the working week, can the driver claim a full week's wage, although a full week has not been worked ?" In explaining the question, the inspector wrote that a driver was given one week's notice of dismissal on a Thursday night, and he finished his employment on the following Friday week. He was then paid £2 wages for part of the week's work. The ordinary week's work finished up on the Saturday night. The answer given by Mr. Justice Sim is an interesting one, and is as follows: — " The week's notice required by the award may be given at any time, and need not expire at the end of a calendar week. The driver in question is only entitled to be paid wages up to the date on which the notice expired."