r. ^ »' ♦ / •t , ^ m*> % ' • \z r •h. S"?:, I THE MINISTRY OF LABOUR GAZETTE ft VoL. L.—No. 10.] OCTOBER, 1942. [P r ic e S i x p e n c e N e t . PRINCIPAL CONTENTS. ® quala. PAGE PAGE Employment, Wages, Cost of Living and Trade Changes in Rates of Wages and Hours of Labour in % m the Disputes in September .. ..173 S e p te m b e r 179 Trade Disputes in September 182 Special Articles, Reviews, etc.:— '^ i K r for Changes in Retail Prices and Cost of Living 183 prevKjuii.. r # .\nnual Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories .. 174 Retail Prices Overseas 184 National Service for Women: Need for Volunteers for a.i.)ii a.,, Employment Overseas 184 the Women's Auxiliary Sendees .. .. .. 175 ' lOth Legal Cases Affecting Labour 184 Essential Work (Building and Civil Engineering) Order, Unemployment Insurance :— fioanj for 1942 .. .. .. .. .. 175 Block ■ C. Decisions given by the Umpire 184 Adims*. Essential Work (Electrical Contracting Industry) Order 175 Conditions of Employment and National Arbitration .i> Essential Work (Shipbuilding and Ship-Repairing) (No. 2) Orders, 1940-1942 :— Order: Directions regarding Women aged 31 and National Arbitration Tribunal Awards .. ..186 over .. .. .. •• •• ..170 ER'ED. National Arbitration Tribunal (Northern Ireland) 'aWkatioas Conditions of Employonent in the Distributive Trades : Awards .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 185 :e postage.] Retail Meat Trade 4 « . 176 Industrial Courts Act, 1919, and Conciliation Act, ' juvmilei Food Control .. 1896 '■^’}. 1942. • ^ .. 176 Industrial Court Awards • • .. 185 n im y oa Price Control of Clothing and Textiles 4 # . 176 \p^meniiii Single Arbitrators and ad hoc Boards of Arbitration 185 Employment in September :— : Stationen- Civil Service Arbitration Tribunal . 185 General Summary 4 4 . 177 Accidenii. Trade Boards Acts :— Unemployment Chart 4 ♦ .. 177 irtC'. Jttly Notices of Proposal .. 185 d.i. Composition of Unemplo5mient Statistics 4 4 . 178 Confirming Orders % 4 185 Unemployment Fund .. 178 Statutory Rules and Orders $ 4 186 Unemployment Allowances . 178 Factories Acts : Factory Forms .. 9 # 186 EMPLOYMENT SEPTEMBER. E m plo y m en t and U nemployment. enilui included most sections of the iron and steel industry, hosiery kUgitft Still T h e number of men and boys registered at Employment manufacture, the hat, cap and millinery, dressruaking and . \ Exchanges in Great Britain as wholly unemployed at 14th women's light clothing industries, tobacco manufacture, printing Studies and September (exclusive of 23,227 men who had been classified by and bookbinding in provincial towns in England and Wales, ubiishedin inter\’iewing panels as unsuitable for ordinary industrial em­ and retail furniture, etc., distribution. King ployment) was 63,703 ; those registered as on short time or Further particulars regarding the changes in rates of wages in othenvise temporarily suspended from work on the under­ September are given on pages 179 to 181. standing that they were shortly to return to their former employment numbered 1,532; and those registered as Cost o f L iv in g . unemployed casual workers (being persons who normally seek their livehhood by jobs of short duration) numbered 2,597. At 1st October the official cost-of-living index figure was .\s compared with 17th August the numbers wholly unemployed 100 per cent, above the level of July. 1914, showng no change showed a decrease of 7,605. those temporarily suspended from as compared with 1st September. work showed a decrease of 234, but unemployed casual workers For food alone the index figure at 1st October was 62 per showed an increase of 49. cent, above the level of July, 1914, as compared with 60 per The corresponding figures for women and girls at 14th Sep­ cent, at 1st September, the rise being mainly due to increases tember were 34,959 wholly unemployed (exclusive of those, in the prices of bread and flour, partly offset by decreases in numbering 1,084, who had been classified by interviewing panels the prices of potatoes. On the other hand, there was a decline as unsuitable for normal full-time employment), 1,177 tem ­ in the average level of clothing prices during September, resulting porarily stopped, and 140 unemployed casual workers Of the partly from the arrangements for the removal of the Purchase 34.959 wholly unemployed. 1,080 had been classified as unable Tax from utility cloth and apparel, and partly from increased for good cause to transfer to another area. As compared with sales of utility clothing at prices below tho.se of non-utility goods 17th August, the numbers wholly unemployed showed a decrease of corresponding quality. of 1.267, those temporarily stopped showed a decrease of 679 Further particulars with regard to retail prices at 1st October but unemployed casual workers showed an increase of 19. are given on page 183. W a g es. T r a d e D is p u t e s . In the industries for which wages are regularly compiled by the DepYtment. the changes in rates of wages reported to have ^ trade disputes involving stoppages of work come into operation in September resulted in an aggregate repo^d to the Department as beginning in September, was 123! increase estimated at nearly £57.000 in the weekly ^11-time In addition, 9 disputes which began before September were still fjr&- wag^ 520,000 workpeople and in a decrease estimated in progress at the beginning of that month. The Approximate p^et^Ie^* ^ week in those of approximately 3,000 work- number of workpeople involved in these 132 disputes (including workpeople thrown out of work at the establishments wherf The industries and services in which wage rates were increased the disputes occurred) was 25.000, and the aggregate duration of the disputes m September was about 53,000 working days & I r l^ ri THE MINISTRY OF LABOUR GAZETTE. October, 1942. ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CHI factories, many of which had been set up in buildings not designed for the accommodation of large numbers of workers Many INSPECTOR OF FACTORIES. Inspectors reported that, in the design of new factories no The Annual Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories* for thought appeared to have been given to the problem of ventila­ the year 1941, which has recently been published, contains a tion under black-out conditions. This section of the Report vs general review of the work of the Factory Department of the also emphasises the importance of the removal of toxic dust and gases by localised exhaust draught applied at the point Ministry of Labour and National Service during that year, of origin. * together with sectional reports dealing separately with health, to in Lighting.—Ihe Factories (Standards of Lighting) Regulations hours of employment and canteens. 1941*. which came into force on 1st February, 1941 led to The Report states that during the year under review the work satisfactory results, particularly in the new war-time factories of the Factor}'^ Inspectors was. to a large extent, again taken and the larger factories generally, and have brought home to up with special war duties consequent on the change that has industry needs which were not properly realised before The taken place in the industrial machine. Both sides in industry medium-sized and small factories have, however generally are concerned with the maximum production that the factory speaking, lagged behind. In applying the Regulations the Co can give, and the efforts of the Factory Department have been increasing need for economy in the use of labour materials 1922 r equally directed to that end. The Department are convinced, and fuel has to be borne in mind, and indications are given . cla: from the experience of this and the last war, that if the maximum in the Report as to the means whereby improved lighting mav ; > c . production is to be obtained the general requirements of the be secured with due regard to this need. ^ Factories Act must be observed, and that the prevention of their* Health — \n a chapter dealing with industrial health the asje accidents, proper ventilation, heating and other physical Senior Medical Inspector reports that, despite all the war-time conditions, and reasonable hours of work are essential to a vieldiD influences which would be expected to affect adversely the health jstJ^ continued war effort. The Report states that the war effort of the w'orker, he cannot say. speaking generally, that there is prefer has also led to continued emphasis on other sides of the work, any reason to think that it has been so affected Nevertheless age liii making for the immediate well-being of the workers, including one would hesitate to say that all groups of workers retain the provision of feeding facilities and the adoption of a proper field io their full vitality. The general maintenance of health was tively 5 personnel management department in the larger works. Con­ largely attributable, he believed, to the steps taken to provide siderable progress has been made in these directions, especially for meals in canteens for the worker at a reasonable rate. There to VOU in the provision of canteens for the feeding of the industrial is no indication that the work which women have taken up in workers. The sections of the Report in which some of these The industry has, in general, adversely affected them, but it would are, io aspects of the work of the Department are discussed in detail seem unwise to employ women who have had children on work Service !‘ i are briefly summarised below. that requires undue strain on the muscles of the abdomen UpOD ' Accident Prevention.—The increase in the gross figures of There is also no direct evidence that young persons have suffered Sei^-ice reportable accidents (fatal and non-fatal) was again very high physical injury in consequence of inevitable temporary increases siatentl in 1941, as will be seen from the following Table giving the in their hours of work.