WOMEN UNDERGROUND

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 208, 5 September 1935, Page 5

WOMEN UNDERGROUND

PROHIBITED IN JAPAN The painful and dangerous character of underground work in mines and the desire to avoi<l other dangers, have led industrial States i'or some time to forbid the employment of women underground (says a report issued by the International Labour Office). Legislation therefore in most countries with mining undertakings lias practically prohibited such work, except in two cases where it is in the process of being eliminated. Tn India, where, in pursuance of the legislation enacted in 1929, a gradual elimination of women workers on underground work is taking place and is expected to be •complete at the latest bv 1939, the Government hopes to be able to speed-up this process of elimination in order to complete it possiblv before July 1. 1936. The Jananese Government is seeking to achieve a complete abolition of such employment both by prohibiting altogether the employment of women on underground work in new undertakings and bv reducing as far as possible the number of women employed underground in certain of tne older mines where it has been necessary to permit it in order to ensure the continued existt-nco of the undertakings conVerned. Thus it is reducing the volume of this labour and has accepted in princinle that it should he entirely eliminated. The eighteenth session of the International T.abour Conference declared in favour of international regulations to make prohibition world-wide, it adopted a draft questionna."p to ho sent to the Governments of States members, and decided to place the question on the agenda for a second discussion.