THE FINE SYSTEM AT HOME.

Colonist, Volume LI, Issue 12470, 22 February 1909, Page 3

THE FINE SYSTEM AT HOME.

One of tlie matters that had to be considered by the committee appointed in the Old -Country to report-on the operations of the Truck Acts, was deductions from the wages of , employees- in -shops- arid factories for breaches of rules. An interesting collection ; of curious fines were made . Fines have been imposed on women for dancing in the dinner hour, sneezing> ; laughing; -singing,, and wearing hair curlers: -A factory inspector- told . r thd T committee of. a case of a.;girl.. ; wh6 liad been; fined _6d for breaking, the. rule about observing "dite.oraer arid decorum." There ■ Was'' f greaV difference 1 of opinion as to '. the^exact. manner, in which the; rule . had" b^eri. broken. . . The explanation was' "that 'the' 'girl had picked ' a spider off-the wally and put it down beside another, .employee. -.- There is justification , for a fine for reading while I working a ' machine" iri a paper fac- I tory,. and: a heavy plumbing -account would vvbe-somerexcuse for .fining )& \. girl threepence, for throwing tea lea- . "yes' : dowh""a drain; but what reason could a West End dressmaker advance for. penalising her employees for coming downstairs -in couples? Miss.Tuckw:ell,.of the Women's Trade Union Xeague, ; stated that when employees, in ascertain jam factory had to attend Guy's Hospital for burns twopence was deducted from their wages for ©very hour they were -ah- . sent." 'A ■ bad burn entailed dis- : missal, afid the firm. ; . also, .dismissed workers for 1 ' such trifles as fetching • hot water from one floor, to-- another; In another factory there are fines of one or two shillings ,fpr making tea, and sixpence for eating bread-and-butter. Another employer paid a wage of five shillings' a week, : and fined at the rate of five shillings an hour for unpunctuality. In the toy balloon trade, wokrers are paid for; the finished product only. The balloons are ..blown up in the factory by balloon " tradb,: workers are, paid.f or in "some weather conditions as many as half. Though it is' not' suggested that- this is the fault of the worker, these useless balloons are not' paid, for. If. is., not surprising that the - committee- has recommended' the abolition of fines in the case of young workers, and that in other cases. fines should not exceed five per cent of the wages.. •■ \ ".- . ."..- 1 -. :■'.'.. •;■