Fined for Helping Youth

Stratford Evening Post, Volume II, Issue 356, 13 September 1933, Page 5

Fined for Helping Youth

GROCERS AWARD BROKENj — Press Association.—Copyright. j Wellington, Sept. 12. i A penalty of £1 was imposed on A. E. | Chamberlain in the Magistrate’s Court ( to-day for a breach of the Grocers’ As- i

iistants’ Award. The Inspector of Awards * claimed a penalty of £lO, alleging that j Chamberlain employed in his shop two > youths and only one senior, whereas the award stipulated that there had to be | more than three fully paid senior assistants before two youths could be em- ! ployed. £ Counsel for the defendant said Cham- jj berlain engaged the second youth mostly I for the boy’s own benefit. When it was j pointed cut that this was a breach of ' the award he was willing to dismiss the j boy, but an inspector told him to retain I the boy until he heard further from him. ! Later Chamberlain’s brother look over i the management of the shop and the inspector drew his attention to the fact that | he was employing two boys when he was I entitled to have only one. The brother j saw Mr. Wakelin, district officer in j charge of the Labour Department, and j Mr, Wakelin advised him to keep the I two boj-s until further notice. If there j was a breach it was only a technical one. |

“It seems a great pity that employers trying to help youths should be harrassed by this class of prosecution,” said counsel.

Mr. Stillwell. S.M., said he was satisfied a breach had been committed. He was somewhat disturbed by the admission that had one of the boys been paid as a junior on the assurance of Mr. Wakelin no prosecution would have followed, even though it was still illegal to employ the two boys.