INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE
oOOggooo

STUDIES AND REPORTS
Series D (Wages and Hours) No. 7

HOURS OF LABOUR
IN INDUSTRY
GREAT BRITAIN

OCTOBER

1 9 2 2

GENEVA

PRINTED BV ALB. RENAUE, GENEVA

General Preface

In conformity with a resolution of the Governing Body adopted
during its 12th Session in April 1922, the Director of the International Labour Office submitted to the Fourth Session of the International Labour Conference, October 1922, a report (*) on the situation with regard to the ratification of the Draft Convention adopted
by the First Session of the International Labour Conference at
Washington in 1919, limiting the hours of work in industrial undertakings to 8 in the day and 48 in the week. This report comprised
a summary survey of existing and proposed regulations - on the
hours of labour, a broad comparison of these with the terms of
the Convention, and an account of the state of ratification and
the difficulties connected therewith which have been experienced.
As such a general report could only summarise very briefly
the large mass of information on the subject of the hours of labour
which the Office has collected, it was considered advisable to
supplement it by more complete information.
On the basis of information in its possession the Office
compiled a preliminary draft, which was submitted to the Government of each country under consideration for amendment and
additions if such were found necessary. The corrections and
suggestions have been incorporated in the text. It is hoped, therefore, that the series will present as accurate an account of the
existing position in all countries as it is possible to obtain.
(*) I N T E R N A T I O N A L L A B O U R O F F I C E : Special

with regard to Ratification

of the Hours Convention.

Report

on the

Situation

94 p p . G e n e v a , 1922.

—4—

The Office regards these studies as more or less tentative and
provisional. The work of ascertaining the exact position regarding
hours of labour will be continued, and the Office will be glad to
receive criticisms and suggestions for the improvement of these
monographs.
The monographs on the more important industrial countries
are issued separately ; others are grouped under one cover.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page

Existing Regulation
i.
2.

ACTS
COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS

7
9

A. Metal t r a d e s , engineering, a n d s h i p b u i l d i n g

13

(a) Metal t r a d e s
(1) I r o n a n d steel t r a d e s
(2) T i n - p l a t e t r a d e
(3) T u b e - m a k i n g t r a d e S c o t l a n d
(4) W i r e m a n u f a c t u r i n g
(5) O t h e r m e t a l t r a d e s
(b) E n g i n e e r i n g t r a d e
(c) S h i p b u i l d i n g
.

14
14
15
16
16
16
16
17

B . B u i l d i n g a n d civil engineering
(a) B u i l d i n g and c o n s t r u c t i o n of w o r k s
(b) Civil engineering c o n s t r u c t i o n

17
18
18

C. T e x t i l e t r a d e s
(a) C o t t o n
(b) W o o l l e n s a n d worsted t r a d e (Yorkshire)

19
19
20

D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
K.

20
21
23
24
25
26
27
27
28
29

Chemicals, p o t t e r y , brick, e t c .
P a p e r , p r i n t i n g a n d allied t r a d e s
Woodworking and furniture trades
L e a t h e r , etc.
Clothing t r a d e s a n d l a u n d r i e s
Food, d r i n k , t o b a c c o , a n d d i s t r i b u t i v e t r a d e s
Transport workers
(a) R a i l w a y w o r k e r s
(b) T r a m w a y w o r k e r s , i n c l u d i n g L o n d o n o m n i b u s w o r k e r s
(c) D o c k e r s

Proposed Legislation

31

Existing Regulation

i. ACTS
With the exception of the mining industry and certain dangerous
and unhealthy trades and processes, there is no industry in Great
Britain where the hours of work of adult males are legally restricted.
The hours of work of women and young persons in factories and
workshops are regulated by the Factory and Workshop Acts, 1901
and 1907, and the Employment of Women, Young Persons and
Children Act, 1920. In practice this regulation has resulted in
limiting to a certain extent the hours of adult males in so far as
their work is dependent upon that of the women and young persons.
The general effect of the Factory Acts is to limit the legal hours
of employment for women and young persons in factories and workshops to a period of 12 hours on all weekdays except Saturday, inclusive of meal times. These 12 hours must be either from 6 a.m. to
6 p.m., or from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., or (except in textile factories)
8 a.m. to 8 p.m. with intervals for meals amounting to 1 % hours
a day (2 in textile factories) on five weekdays and on Saturdays,
or a day substituted for Saturday, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. or 7
a.m. to 3 p.m. or 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (except in textile factories, where
the period on Saturday ceases at midday) with an interval
of half an hour for meal. A strictly limited amount of overtime
in excess of these hours is allowed in certain industries for women
over 18 years of age on weekdays other than Saturday.
Power is given by the Employment of Women, Young Persons,
and Children Act, 1920, to allow a system of employment on two
day shifts to be fixed between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. (6 a.m. and
2 p.m. on Saturdays). Employment on Sundays (except in a few
industries under special circumstances) and employment at night
are prohibited for women and young persons, except that male
young persons over 16 years of age may be employed in certain
processes which require to be carried out continuously. In certain
dangerous and unhealthy industries the hours of women and young
persons are further limited by Regulations made by the Secretary
of State. Under the Regulations for the smelting of lead, the
manufacture of certain lead compounds, the manufacture of pottery
and the manufacture of india-rubber, the hours of employment
for men are also restricted.
The Coal Mines Regulation Act, 1908, brought into force the
so-called "8-hour d a y " for all underground workers (subject to

—8—

certain specified exceptions) employed in mines of coal, stratified
ironstone, and fireclay. In actuality the 8-hour day constituted
8 hours plus the time taken for one winding. The persons specificali}'
excepted included amongst others, firemen, pump minders, fanmen,
furnacemen and onsetters, whose maximum hours underground
were limited to 91/»- It was also provided that no contravention
of the provisions of the Act of 1908 should be deemed to have
taken place in the case of any workman who was below ground
for the purpose of rendering assistance in the event of accident or
for meeting any danger or apprehended danger or for dealing with
any emergency or work uncompleted through unforeseen circumstances which requires to be dealt with without interruption in
order to avoid serious interference with the ordinary work in the
mine or in any district of the mine.
The Coal Mines Act, 1911, introduced an 8-hour day for
winding enginemen also, but a Regulation of 1913 made it permissible for these workmen to be employed in certain circumstances
for more than 8 hours.
The Coal Mines Act of 1919 amended the Act of 1908 in its
application to mines in which coal is worked by substituting
7 hours and 8 hours for the 8 hours and gl/2 hours as prescribed
in the Act of 1908 and by omitting onsetters from the list of
exceptions.
The Act also provides that the Secretary of State, after consultation with the workers affected or their representatives, may in
the case of persons employed on work which requires to be carried
on continuously by day and by night, allow them to be employed
below ground for not more than 8 hours during any consecutive
24 hours.
In the case of a shift of workmen, the period of 7 hours is
reckoned from the time the last workman in the shift leaves the
surface to the time the first workman in the shift returns to the
surface.
In the case of underground workers the limit of 7 hours may be
exceeded for the purpose of rendering assistance in the event of
accident, for meeting any danger or apprehended danger, for
dealing with any emergency or work uncompleted through unforeseen circumstances which requires to be dealt with without
interruption to avoid serious interference with ordinary work in
the mine. (Particulars of each such case must be entered in the
register which is required to be kept by the management of the mine.)
The law may be suspended by Order in Council in the event of
war or imminent national danger or great emergency, or in the
event of grave economic disturbances due to the demand for coal,
etc., exceeding the supply.
One or two small modifications for special classes of work also
apply. Thus a winding engineman may for the purpose of changing
shifts be employed on one day in the week up to 16 hours or for
two shifts of 8 hours each, provided that in either case (1) an
interval of not less than 8 hours elapses between the termination
of his employment in one shift and the commencement of his

- 9 employment in the next, (2) the period of employment does not
on the average of any three consecutive weeks exceed 8 hours per
working day. In certain other specified emergencies such exceptions are to be entered on a register.
One hour's overtime is allowed on not more than sixty days in
the year. Each occasion on which overtime is worked must be
recorded on a special register.
The practical effect of the Act of 1919 is that coal miners are
underground between 7 % and 8 hours on the average. Under
the earlier so-called "8-hour A c t " the worker was underground
between 8% ar<d 10% hours per day (1).
The number of persons employed in mines, both under and
above ground, at the end of December 1921 was 1,144,311 (2).

2. COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS
Since the end of the war the extension of the system of collective
agreement, with the revision of existing agreements, have resulted
in the virtual supersession of the regulation of hours under
the Factory and Workshop Acts. Great impetus was given
to this movement in 1919 by the establishment of Joint Industrial
Councils, covering a large proportion of the most important industries in Great Britain. Under these agreements a normal working week of 48 hours or less is almost universal.
The report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops
for 1919 calls attention to the general reduction in hours of work
which followed the end of the war. This reduction, it is stated,
was accomplished without legislation and in most trades without
serious friction between employers and workers. The report for
1920 states that there was very little change during that year in
the hours of employment in factories and workshops generally
until the recent collapse of trade, when large numbers of works
were p u t on short time and many others were compelled to close
either partially or wholly. The general reduction in 1919-1920
did not apparently produce any increase of overtime, and the time
worked beyond the reduced normal hours was no greater in amount
and probably even less than the overtime worked in busy times
before the war beyond the longer hours then customary.
The workers show an increasing objection to overtime and, in many
cases, they have refused to work beyond the standard hours, even
though the agreements fixing these hours usually provide for increased
wage-rates during overtime. This extra wage cost, bv making overtime
so expensive, has caused many employers who formerly resorted t o
the practice at times of pressure to do without it.... This stimulus and

(*) COAL INDUSTRY COMMISSION: Reports, Vol. I . p . x v . London, 1919.

(2) MINES DEPARTMENT : First Annual Report of the Secretary for Mines
for the Year ending 31 December 1921, p. 102. London, 1922.

— 10 —
the demands of the worker for shorter hours have led to improved
organisation of the work and better means of transport, and these
again have facilitated a reduction of hours (*).

The report states that comparatively few cases of exceeding
the statutory limits imposed by the Factory Acts have come to
the notice of the inspectors, which is not surprising, since the
margin is wide between the legally permissible working hours for
young persons and women and the actual customary hours. In
1920 only 632 complaints on all employment points were received,
whereas in 1913 the number was 2,607.
In a letter from the Secretary of the Ministry of Labour to the
Secretary of the Cabinet, dated 22 July 1921, it is stated that
collective agreements and the coal mine laws fixing a normal working week of 48 hours or less cover from ten to twelve million workers
in the United Kingdom, or about 70 to 80 per cent, of the total
employed population and practically the whole of those employed
in industrial undertakings, including engineering and shipbuilding, mining, railways, docks, textile, building and structural undertakings.
Figures are not available to show the precise number of these
agreements, nor is the 1921 census yet available. The Labour
Gazette for January 1921 states that during 1919 6,461,000 (-)
workpeople had their hours of work reduced, the average reduction
being about 6\'.¿ hours per week. The aggregate reduction in
weekly hours for the year was 41,755,000. Again, the reductions
in normal weekly hours of labour in 1920 affected about 560,000
workpeople, whose recognised working week was reduced by an
average of 3.7 hours. The aggregate reduction in working hours
was 2,085,000. The changes in 1921, as reported in the Labour
Gazette for January 1922, affected only about 44,000 workpeople,
13,000 of whom had their hours reduced by 34,000 a week, i. e.
a reduction of about 2.6 hours per week, and 31,000 of whom had
their hours increased by 46,000, i. e. an increase of 1.5 hours per
week. As late as November 1922 no important general changes
in hours were reported in the Labour Gazette.
The Official Return (Cmd. 1494) gives the number of the total
staff.employed by the railway companies in the United Kingdom
during the week ending 19 March 1921 as 766,385.
In September 1922 the Ministry of Labour communicated to
the Office the following figures, which give the estimated number
of workers insured under the Unemployment Insurance Acts, 1920
and 1921, at the end of June 1922.

I1) Annual Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops for
the Year 1920, p. 148. London, 1921.
(2) Agricultural labourers, seamen, police, domestic servants and clerks
are not included. The statistics relate mainly to organised groups of workers
and many changes affecting individuals or individual firms are not reported.

— 11 —
Metal trades, engineering and shipbuilding
Building and construction of works
Textile trade
Chemicals, pottery, brick, etc.
Paper, printing and allied trades
Woodworking and furniture trades
Leather, etc.
Clothing trades and laundrv
Food, drink, tobacco, and distributive trades

2,282,770

884,670
1,309,490
394.64°
34i,8lo
432,56o
69,800
789,040
1,483,280
Total

7,988,060

Under the collective agreements the week generally consists
of 5 % days, and in those industries in which 47 hours constitute
the normal weekly period this involves working more than 8 hours
on the five full days, in order to permit of the half-holiday on
Saturday. In some cases (e. g. with cocoa and chocolate workers
a t York and certain sections of the printing trade in London)
arrangements have been made between employers and workers
under which a working week of 44 to 48 hours is spread over five
days only, no work being done on Saturday or Sunday, and in
these cases the normal working day also exceeds 8 hours. On the
other hand, in a few industries (e. g. iron smelting and some branches
of the chemical trades), in which owing to the nature of the processes
work is continued through the week-end, the processmen work
seven 8-hour shifts in the week.
In industries in which the manufacturing processes are carried
on continuously by day and night—e. g. the smelting and manufacture of iron and steel, the chemical trades, and paper-making—
the agreements generally make special provision for extra payment for overtime worked by non-shift workers on occasions when
it becomes necessary for them to remain on duty after the expiration of their ordinary day's work.
The hours fixed by the agreements are those constituting a
normal week's work, exclusive of overtime, but in the majority of
t h e agreements provision is also made for overtime in excess of the
specified hours, to be paid for at special rates, ranging generally
from 25 to 50 per cent, above the ordinary rates on week-days,
with higher rates for week-end work and, in some cases, for prolonged spells of overtime on any one day. Some agreements
impose limitations on the amount of overtime to be worked, but
in other cases there is no such restriction. For example, in the
engineering industry (1), an agreement between the Employers'
Federation and the Amalgamated Engineering Union provides
t h a t no Union workman shall be required to work more than
30 hours' overtime in any four weeks, except in cases of breakdowns,
repairs, replacements, alterations, trial trips, or of the completion
of work against delivery dates, on which classes of work overtime
is not to be restricted. In the printing industry, in which overtime is often essential to meet urgent demands which cannot be
foreseen, the rules of one of the principal trade unions provide for
overtime work up to a limit of 16 hours in any two consecutive
(!) See pp. 16-17.

— 12 —

weeks, provided that such overtime is not systematic, but thislimit is not to apply in cases of breakdown or emergency. In
London the printing trade agreements (x) provide that compositors shall not work more than 24 hours' overtime in any four
weeks or 9 hours in any one week on general work, or more than
8 hours in the week on daily newspaper work. In the building
trade in many of the principal districts the agreements (2), while
generally providing for the payment of higher rates for overtime,
stipulate that systematic overtime shall not be worked unless
agreed to by representatives of the workers. In the railway
service (3) the principle of the 8-hour day was p u t into operation
in 1919, but in view of the special conditions attaching to the
working of the railways and of the impracticability of limiting the
actual day's work to 8 hours in all cases, an agreement between
the railway companies and the trade unions provided for the pa}-ment of overtime at the rate of time and a quarter, with time and
a half for overtime worked at night and on Sundays. In January
1922 the National Wages Board (composed of representatives of
the railway companies, the trade unions and the users of railways)
found that the operation of the 8-hour day instituted in 1919 had
been marked by an inflexibility which the conditions of railway
service did not easily support and they decided t h a t "incases where
economy would accrue" men might in future be rostered up to
9 hours a day, any time worked over 8 hours being paid for at
the agreed overtime rate.
The Trade Boards have also in most cases declared the normal hours of work (after the completion of which overtime rates
are to be paid) to be 48 in the week in unorganised trades. In
several trades the Boards have made provision whereby the
length of the normal day, beyond which overtime rates are
payable, may be extended in cases where it is the established
practice of the employers to require attendance on only five days
of the week. The decisions of the Trade Boards affect approximately 3 million workers and, if approved by the Minister of
Labour, have the force of law (4).
Industrial agreements generally in Great Britain have not
the force of law, but they have been effective in reducing the
hours of labour in nearly all industries.
Detailed information has been published by the British Ministry
of Labour regarding standard hours of labour in the most important occupations in the United Kingdom on 31 December
1920 (5). A summary of this information, corrected up to date
by the Ministry of Labour, is given below. Unless otherwise stated
the data apply to the United Kingdom as a whole.
(1) See p. 22.
(2) See p. 18.
(3) See p. 27.
4
( ) Report to the Minister of Labour of the Committee appointed to enquire
into the Working and Effects of the Trade Boards Acts, p. 10. London, 1922.
(5) MINISTRY OF LABOUR : Standard Time Rates of Wages and Hours of
Labour in the United Kingdom at 31 December 1920. Cmd. 1253. London,
H. M. Stationery Office, 1921.

— 13 —
The figures are the recognised hours of labour in a full week,
exclusive of mealtime and overtime. They are, in general, hours
recognised by the various employers' organisations and workers'
unions concerned, or agreed upon by Joint Industrial Councils or
Trade Boards.
For most industries an indication of the number of workers
to whom the hours of labour appi}' is given, the figures being
those of the-estimated number of workpeople in Great Britain and
Northern Ireland insured under the Unemployment Insurance
Acts, 1920 and 1921. These numbers do not include persons
employed otherwise than by manual labour at a rate of remuneration exceeding in value ¿250 a year, juveniles under 16 years of
age and certain other classes.

A.

Metal

Trades, Engineering,

and

Shipbuilding

Estimated N'umber of Workers
(a) Metal trades :
Iron, steel, tinplate and galvanised sheet
manufacture
Brass, copper, zinc, etc. . .
Electrical and surgical instruments . . . .
Hand tools, cutlery, etc
.
Needles, pins, steel pens, dies, seals, etc. .
Wire and wire goods
Bolts, nuts, screws, chains, anchors, etc. . .
Hardware and hollow ware
Watches, plate, jewellery, etc
Miscellaneous metal goods (including musical
instruments)
(b) Engineering and ironfounding
(c) Shipbuilding

303,810
62,310
108,740
28,750
15,160
27,610
37,010
106,100
48,340
54,070
1,139,640
351,230

Total

.

2,282,770

Hours 0/ Work
Week of 47 hours
(a) Engineers (1).
(b) Boilermakers and iron and steel shipbuilders.
(c) Engine shop, shipyard, etc., labourers.
(d) Brass moulders, brass finishers, and coppersmiths.
(e) Iron founders and patternmakers.
(¡) Shipwrights, ship j oiners, ship plumbers, and ship painters( 2 ).
(*) Sandbach, 46*4—47 hours.
(2) London, 45 hours.

(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
(I)
(m)
(n)
(0)
(p)
(q)
(r)
(s)
(t)

14 -

Farriers (1).
Brass workers, Birmingham and Yorkshire.
Silver and electro-plate workers, Sheffield.
Gold, silver, electro-plate, jewellery, etc., Birmingham.
Heating and domestic engineers (pipe fitters), England
and Wales (2).
Electric cable makers.
Lock, latch, and key makers.
Optical instrument makers.
Pen makers, Birmingham and district.
Coachbuilders, woodcutting machinists, etc., employed in
engineering and allied establishments.
Railway wagon builders and repairers.
Light castings, Glasgow and Falkirk.
Miscellaneous engineering, shipbuilding and other metal
workers (3).
Wire weavers (4).

Week of 48 hours
(a) Hosiery needle makers.
(b) Harness furniture, bit, spur and stirrup makers, Birmingham and Walsall.
(c) Bobbin makers.
(d) Card setting machine tenters.
(e) Lead smelters and rollers (5).
Terms of Collective A greements
(a) Metal

Trades

(1) Iron and Steel Trades. The 8-hour day on the three shift
system is practically universal, though groups of men throughout
the industry, mainly maintenance men on day work, are on t h e
47-hour week. Overtime for such workers is regulated by an
agreement between the Engineering and National Employers'
Federation and the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation, which
contains provisions similar to those agreed upon for the engineering trade described below. The workers covered by this agreement are mainly employed in the Sheffield district, but it is understood that the overtime rates specified apply generally to maintenance men in other districts. The agreement on which the
practically universal 8-hour day is based was signed on 19 February
1919 by a Joint Committee representing the Steel Ingot Makers'
Í1) King's Lynn, Exeter, Plymouth, Worthing, Ayr, 48 ; Tunbridge
Wells, 50 ; Leith, Dundee, Edinburgh, 48; Eastbourne, Falkirk, 50; Dublin,
4 4 % hours.
(2) Scotland, 44 hours.
(3) Reedmaking (Lancashire), 4 8 ; military musical instrument making
(London), 4 8 ; barge building (London), 48 hours.
(4) Glasgow, 46 y2 hours.
(5) Workers other than those on continuous processes, 47 hours.

— 15 —
Association, the National English Iron and Steel Manufacturers'
Association, the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation and the
Amalgamated Society of Steel and Iron Workers. Its provisions
are as follows :
(i) Shifts of 8 hours each to be arranged as follows : 6 a.m.
to 2 p.m., 2 p.m. to i o p.m., io p.m. to 6 a.m.
(it) In melting shops the melters shall start at 6 p.m. on
Sunday and mills at 6 a.m. on' Monday, provided that if at any
works there is a surplus of material available for the mills beyond
what can be worked up between the hours of 6 a.m. on Monday
and I p.m. on Saturday, the millmen can be called upon to work
on Sunday night, beginning at 12 midnight, with the object of
maintaining the maximum output.
(in) The recognised time of finishing in melting shops and
mills shall be i p.m. on Saturday. Workmen engaged after that
hour shall be paid at the rate of time and a half or tonnage and a
half for the extra time worked. As regards melting furnaces,
every endeavour will be made to t a p not later than i p.m. on
Saturday, but if from any uncontrollable circumstance a furnace
does not tap till after 1.30 p.m. overtime shall be paid at the rate
of tonnage and a half, provided t h a t in mills where owing to a
breakdown the material in the mill furnaces cannot be worked out
by 1 p.m. the men shall finish working such material without
overtime payment being applied ; but if the period extends beyond
1.30 p.m. the overtime payment shall apply from then onwards.
(iv) Week-end overtime rates are time and a half after 2 p.m.
on Saturday and double time on Sunday.
(2) Tin-Plale Trade. By agreement between representatives
of the employers and workers the following arrangements were
adopted as from 3 March 1919 :
(i) All day men (except processmen working by day) shall be
granted a 47-hour week with two breaks. Time of working is
to be as follows :
Weekdays . . 7 a.m. to 8.30 a.m.
9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturdays
. 7 a.m. to 8.30 a.m.
9 a.m. to 12 noon.
(ii) Men working day and night alternate weeks on day or
hour rates are to be placed on 8-hour shifts and the week's work
to commence at 6 a.m. on Monday and end at 6 p.m. on Saturday,
as follows :
Weekdays . . 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.
2 p.m. to 10 p.m.
10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Saturdays . . 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.
2 p.m. to 6 p.m.

— Lô —

Work done between 6 p.m. on Saturday and 6 a.m. on Sunday
is to be paid for at double time.
At a few works a system of 6-hour shifts is understood to have
been in operation for the last 30 years and though provisions were
made in 1919 whereby the 6-hour shift might be extended to other
works, such extension was not adopted and subsequently conditions were agreed upon by which the 6-hour shift mills could be
placed on the 8-hour shift system. It is reported that only a very
small number of mills at three or four works are now working
6-hour shifts and that even in those cases the system is intermittent and irregular.
(3) Tube-making Trade Scotland. An agreement of 1 April
1920, between the Scottish Tube Makers' Wages Association and
the Workers' Union, the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation and
the National Union of General Workers, establishes a normal
week's work, both on day and night shift, of 47 hours. Overtime
is paid for at time and a half and Sunday work at double time.
Work during meal hours is paid as overtime, unless the worker
desires to have, and is allowed, equivalent time.
The usual Scottish holidays are recognised and double 'time
is paid for work performed on such days and for work on Sundays,
i. e. between Saturday midnight and Sunday midnight.
(4) Wire Manufacturing.
The agreement between the Master
Wire Workers' Association, London, and the National Brass and
Metal Mechanics' Union, London, of 6 May 1921 provides that :
" 47 hours shall be recognised as the normal working week. Overtime shall be paid when the 47 hours have been completed for each
week."
(5) Other Metal Trades. In various other metal trades, including brass working, gold, silver and allied trades, heating and
domestic engineering, electrical cable making, railway carriage
and wagon building and repairing, and the manufacture of light
castings, there are also agreements between the employers and
workers fixing the normal hours at 47 in the week and providing
for payment for overtime.
(b) Engineering

Trade

The normal week in this industry is 47 hours. The Agreement
dated 29-30 September 1920, which applies to men working a
47-hour week, provided that overtime worked by day workers
either before or after the normal working hours should be paid
at the rate of time and a half, except in the case of work done
between midnight and the beginning of the following day shift by
a workman who continues working until after midnight, in which
case it should be paid at double time. For night workers a full
night shift week consists of 47 working hours, worked on five
nights with one or two breaks for meals. Night shift work is to
be paid at the rate of time and one-third for all hours worked ;
hours after the full night has been worked, at time and two-thirds ;

-

17 —

and all hours worked between Saturday midnight and Sunday
night at double time, and work done on Saturday, other than the
above, and on Monday until the day shift, at time and two-thirds.
The agreement contained clauses to the effect that " The Federation
(the Engineering and National Employers' Federation) and the
Trade Union (the Amalgamated Engineering Union) agree that
systematic overtime is deprecated as a method of production
and that, when overtime is necessary, the following provisions
shall apply, namely, no Union workman shall be required to work
more than 30 hours' overtime in any four weeks after full shop
hours have been worked, allowance being made for time lost
through sickness, absence with leave or enforced idleness. In
the following cases, overtime is n'ot to be restricted : breakdowns,
repairs, replacements, alterations (whether for the employers or
their customers), trial trips, and completion of work against delivery
dates." The recent dispute in the industry arose out of the interpretation of these clauses and ended in the acceptance of the
employers' proposals, which provide, as regards hours of work,
that " t h e employers have the right to decide when overtime is
necessary, the workpeople or their representatives being entitled
to bring forward, under the provisions for avoiding disputes, any
cases of overtime they desire discussed. Meantime, the overtime
required shall be proceeded with."
(c)

Shipbuilding

By agreement between the Shipbuilding Employers' Federation
and the trade unions concerned, dated 24 December 1918, the
normal hours of labour in this industry are 47 in the week.

B.

Building

and Civil

Engineering

Estimated Number of Workers
(a) Building
(b) Construction of works other than building . .
Total

772,070
112,600
884,670

Hours 0/ Work
Week of 44 hours (February
and January)

to November),

41 y2 hours (December

(a) Building trades, Great Britain.
(b) Building trades, Ireland (Belfast) (1).
(*) Belfast bricklayers, carpenters, etc., 44 hours (summer), 42 (winter);
painters, 47.

— 1¿ —

Week of 47 hours
(a) Electrical installation.
(b) Employees of public works contractors (London).
Week of 48 hours (average)
Men on civil engineering constructional
49 /2> winter 44 V2 (average 48).

works : summer

Terms of Collective Agreements
(a) Building and Construction of Works. In January 1922 t h e
44-hour week was worked throughout the country by building trade
operatives as a result of the decision of the National Conciliation
Board, but employers were stated to desire an extension of these
hours. The 44-hour week has been in operation in Scotland since
J a n u a r y 19.19. In March 1922 the National Wages and Conditions
Council for the Building Industry ordered that the working hours for
the months of December and January should be 41 y.¿ per week and
that further consideration of the alteration of the summer working
hours should be deferred until the January 1923 meeting^). An agreement has been made by the Council (subject to ratification by the
constituent bodies of employers and workers represented on the
Council) by which overtime is provided for at the following rates :
for the first five days in the week, first 2 hours, time and a
quarter ; second 2 hours, time and a half ; afterwards, until
starting time next morning, double time ; time worked between
leaving-off time on Saturdays and 4 p.m., time and a half ; afterwards, until starting time on Monday morning, double time. Overtime Committees consisting of representatives of the employers'
and workers' organisations, to whom all cases of overtime must
immediately be referred, are to be set u p in all localities covered
by the agreement. The consent of the Joint Committee concerned
is required for overtime to be continued for more than four consecutive days. There is a general agreement that systematic overtime should be discouraged, but it is recognised that occasions
arise when it is imperative that some amount of overtime should
be worked for the proper progress of the task in hand.
(b) Civil Engineering Construction.
Under an agreement
between the Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors and the
trade unions concerned the hours of labour and overtime rates are
fixed as follows : (i) for the summer months (two-thirds of the
year), 49y 2 hours in the week (9 hours on week-days and 4 H hours
on Saturday 1 ; for the winter months, 44 ^ hours in the week
(8 hours on week-days and 4 % hours on Saturday), (ii) Overtime
shall be paid for on week-days at time and a quarter for the first
2 hours, time and a half for the second 2 hours, and double time
after 4 hours ; on Saturday, time and a half till 4 p.m., and
thereafter, and all day on Sunday, double time.
(*) See I N T E R N A T I O N A L L A B O U R O F F I C E : Industrial

tion, Vol. I I , N o . 1, 7 April 1922, p . 22.

and Labour

Informa-

C,

Textile

Trades

Estimated Number of Workers
Cotton trade
Woollen and worsted
Silk
Flax, linen, and hemp
Jute
Lace
Rope, twine, cord, and net
Textile bleaching, dyeing, etc
Hosiery
Carpet and rug
Other textiles
Total

573,080
264,440
33.780
89,990
47.970
27,950
21,650
100,320
82,360
22,550
45,400
1,309,490

Hours oj Work
. Week of 48 hours
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
(k)
(I)

Cotton trade.
Woollen and worsted trade.
Silk workers.
Flax and hemp, Great Britain.
Jute, Great Britain.
Lace (Nottingham, Long Eaton, Ilkeston, Heanor, Beeston
and Derby) (*).
Rope, twine and net, Great Britain.
Textile bleaching, dyeing and finishing.
Linen manufacture (Belfast).
Asbestos manufacture.
Hosiery manufacture.
Miscellaneous textile workers (2).

Week of 46 % hours
Textile making up and packing (Manchester).
Terms of Collective A greements
(a) Cotton. The Agreement of 9 July 1919, between the Federation of Master Cotton Spinners' Associations and the various
workers' organisations, reduced the weekly hours from 55 y2 to 48,
one month's notice to be given by either side of any desired alteration. No provision was made concerning overtime, to which the
workers generally are said to be opposed.
(x) Juniors (males in levers section) and lace designers and draftsmen
(apprentices and improvers), 44hours; juniors (females) in lace embroidery
manufacture, Nottingham, 49% hours.
(2) Including coir mat and matting makers, tape makers (Derby)
and jute manufacture (Dundee).

-

20 —

(b) Woollens and Worsted Trade (Yorkshire). Under an arrangement made by the National Wool and Allied Textile Industrial
Council on 3 February 1919 the weekly hours of textile operatives
covered by the Council are reduced to 48 hours, to consist of 8 3 / 4
hours on Monday to Friday, with two breaks for meals, and 4" At
hours on Saturday, with one break. In the matter of overtime,
females and young persons under 18 years of age are prohibited
by regulations under the Factory Act from working more than
5 5 % hours in the week.
The Trade Unions concerned are generally opposed to overtime working and the Joint Industrial Council has decided that
firms desiring to work overtime must apply to the Council for
sanction.

D.

Chemicals, Pottery,

Brick,

etc

Estimated Numbers of Workers
(a) Ammunition, explosives, chemicals, etc. .
(b) Bricks, tiles, etc
(c) Pottery, earthenware, etc

246,330
78,250
70,060

Total

394.640

Hours of Work
Week of 48 hours
(a) Brick makers.
(b) Soap and candle workers.
( c) Drug and fine chemical workers.
(d) Printing ink makers.
(e) Boot and floor polish makers.
Week of
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
( e)

47 hours
Pottery (i).
Chemical plumbers and lead burners.
Paint, colour, and varnish workers.
Match makers.
Heavy chemical workers (day-workers) (2).

Other hours
(a) Chemists' assistants, Ireland :
(i) Male workers
(ii) Females

50
44

(x) Stokers, enginemen and labourers over twenty-one, 48 hours.
(2) In the case of shift workers, the hours are 8 per shift.

— 21 —

E. Paper, Printing

and Allied

Trades

Estimated number of workers

341,810

Hours of Work
Week of 48 hours
(a) Compositors, bookbinders, printers* assistants, etc (1).
(b) Lithographic printers (2).
(c) Lithographic artists and designers.
(d) Lithographic plate grainers and preparers.
(e) Paper mill workers (day workers) (3).
(f) Paper box makers.
(g) Envelope and stationery makers.
Other hours
(a) Paper tube workers
47
(b) Newspaper office clerks :
(i) London
44
(ii) Manchester
39
(c) Electrotypers and stereotypers employed
on printing periodicals (London) (4) . . 44
Terms of Collective Agreements
(1) An agreement concluded between the Federation of
Master Printers and Allied Trades of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland and the Printing and Kindred Trades
Federation of the United Kingdom at a joint conference, held on
30 January 1919, ran as follows : " T h a t the working week for all
departments shall be 48 hours." Agreements (5) between the
Federation of Master Printers and the principal trade unions provide t h a t overtime during any one day or night shall be paid for
at the rate of time and a quarter for the first 2 hours, time and
a half for the next 3 hours, and double time afterwards for any
period it may be necessary to work until a rest of 8 hours can be
given. On Saturdays time and a half is paid for the first 5 hours
and double time afterwards, and on Sundays double finie. Men
required to begin before the ordinary time of starting are paid at
the rate of time and a half until the usual hour of starting.
(*) In a number of cases, workers on night work or on Sunday news
work less than 48 hours.
(2) Stockton, Middlesbrough, West Bromwich, Stoke, 47 ; Clydach,
Greenock, Worcester, 47-48 ; Northampton, Leicester, 46-48 ; Neath, Briton
Ferry, 46 V2-48 ; Hull, 44-4S ; Bradford, 45 l, 4-48.
(3) Shift workers, 44 hours.
(4) I t is optional for the employers to work these hours by five days of
8 hours and 4 hours on Saturday or to work the 44-hour week on five
days, no day to exceed 9 hours.
(5) These agreements do not cover newspaper offices.

-

22 —

(2) An agreement (l) (revised to January 1920) between the
London Master Printers' Association and the London Printing
Trades' Federation provided regulations with regard to overtime
and night work as follows :
(a) Overtime shall be paid for at the rate of time and a
quarter of the ordinary day time rate for the first 2 hours, time and
a half for the next 3 hours, double time to continue afterwards for
any further period it may be necessary to work until a rest of 8 hours
can be given.
Saturday overtime : Time and a half for the first 3 hours,
afterwards, double ordinary time rate.
(b) The ordinary working hours of night shifts on any four
nights of the week to be a minimum of 42 per week. Members
called upon to stay beyond the recognised night's work shall
charge the extra hours at night time rate and a quarter ; Saturdays
and Sundays, double ordinary day time rate.
An agreement of 29 September 1921 between the London
Master Printers' Association and the London Society of Compositors provides that the overtime l i m i t " shall be reduced to 24 hours
in each four weeks and that the maximum in any one week shall
be reduced to 9 hours."
(3) The National Agreement No. 3 between the Executive
Council of the Employers' Federation of Paper Makers and representatives of the National Union of Printing and Paper Workers
and of the Amalgamated Society of Paper Makers, under the
auspices of the Ministry of Labour, was signed on 9 May 1922,
accepted by the members of the Union, and confirmed in general
meeting by the Federation.
(a) Hours for shift workers in paper mills : in mills on three
shifts, the working week for shift workers shall be 132 hours, t h a t
is, an average of 44 hours per person per week, but, where the
employer and employees agree, the following extra hours may be
worked, namely, 4 hours at time and a quarter and a further
2 hours at time and a half.
(b) Without prejudice to the foregoing clause, any firm m a y
temporarily, owing to an emergency or exceptional conditions,
run their mill an additional number of hours per week, provided
the consent of the District Boards of the Federation and the
Unions concerned is previously obtained. Such hours shall be
paid for at the overtime rate provided in this agreement.
(c)

Hours for day workers to be 48 per week.

(d) Overtime rates. Midweek overtime shall be paid at the
rate of time and a quarter, and week-end overtime at the rate of
time and a half, but for all time worked between midnight Saturd a y and midnight Sunday double time shall be paid.
(') This agreement does not cover newspaper offices.

— 23 —

(4) An agreement was concluded on 17 March 1920 between
the British Paper Box Manufacturers' Federation and the National
Union of Printing and Paper Workers, in the following terms :
(a) The normal number of hours of work shall be as follows :
In any week, 48 ; on any day other than Saturday, 9 ; on Saturday, 5.
(b)

Rates for overtime shall be paid as follows :

(i) For the first 2 hours' overtime on any day except Saturdays, Sundays and customary public and statutory holidays, time
and a quarter.
(ii)
For overtime after the first 2 hours' overtime on any
days except Sundays and customary public and statutory holidays
and for all overtime on Saturdays, the overtime rates shall be
time and a half.
(iii)
All time worked on Sundays and customary public and
statutory holidays shall be paid for at double time.

F. Woodworking and Furniture

Trades

Estimated Number of Workers
(a) Sawmilling and machined woodwork
(b) Construction and repair of vehicles

. . . .

220,250
212,310

Hours of Work
Week of 47 hours
(a) Furniture trade, male operatives (1).
(i) London ; (ii) Scotland (2) ; (iii) Ireland (3).
(b) Packing case makers (4).
(c) Coopers (5) (England and Wales).
(d) Saw mill workers (6).
(x) Northern' counties and Yorkshire, 44 ; Lancashire and Cheshire,
4 6 % (certain towns, 44) ; Midland, Eastern, and Southern counties, 44
to 4 7 ; Wales and Monmouthshire, 4 6 % to 4 7 ; female workers (United
Kingdom), 44 to 47 hours.
(2) Edinburgh and Leith, 44 hours.
(3) Dublin, 44 hours.
(4) Oldham, 4614 hours.
(5) Bradford, 48 ; Scotland, 47 to 48.
(6) In certain parts of England hours range from 44 to 47 % per week ;
Edinburgh, 44 to 47.

-

24

-

(e) Picture frame makers, Nottingham.
(f) Vehicle builders (l) (England, Wales, and Scotland).
(g) Piano makers (London).
Week of 48 hours
Shuttle makers (Lancashire and Yorkshire).
Terms of Collective Agreements
Vehicle Trades. An agreement was concluded between t h e
United Kingdom Wages Board of Employers for the Vehicle
Building Industry, the Amalgamated Society of Wheelwrights,
Smiths and Kindred Trades and the Amalgamated Society of
Wood Cutting Machinists of Great Britain and Ireland on 2 May
1922 in the following terms :
Working hours to be 47 per week, " unless and after a n y
lengthened period is established in the engineering trade, when
such shall apply to the vehicle building industry". Overtime is
to be paid for as follows : first 2 hours, time and a quarter, second
2 hours, time and a half ; after 4 hours, double time ; Saturday
afternoon, first 2 hours, time and a half ; thereafter double time ;
Sunday and Bank holidays (excluding Good Friday) double time.
This agreement is to remain in forcé until 1 March 1923.

O. Leather, etc.
Estimated Number of Workers
Leather and leather goods

69,800

Hours of Work
Week of 48 hours
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)

Leather curriers, tanners, etc.
Saddlers and harness makers.
Fellmongering trade.
Domestic and Persian roller leather workers.

(^ A number of vehicle builders (e. g. railway carriage and wagon
quilders, etc.) are included under the metal trades.

-

H. Clothing

25 —

Trades and

Laundries

Estimated Number of Workers
Tailoring
Dress, millinery, and furs
Hats, caps, and bonnets
Corset
Boot and shoe
Other clothing
Laundry

211,330
235,450
33,840
13,930
146,750
4L730
106,010

Total

789,040

Hours of Work
Week of 48 hours
(a) Ready-made and wholesale bespoke tailoring.
(b) Retail bespoke tailoring.
(c) Dressmaking and women's light clothing, England and
Wales Í1).
(d) Hat, cape and millinery, England and Wales.
( e) Furs.
(f) Corset making.
(g) Boot and shoe operatives.
(h) Boot and shoe repairing.
(i) Shirt making, Great Britain.
(j) Wholesale mantle and costume, Great Britain.
(k) Laundry, Great Britain.
(I) Button makers.
Week of 47 hours
(a) Dyers and cleaners, Great Britain.
(b) Glovemakers, male (2).
(c) Warehousemen employed by wholesale boot and shoe
distributors (Leicester).
Week of 44 hours
(a) Workpeople employed in wholesale clothing, millinery,
etc. warehouses, Manchester.
(b) Tie makers, London.
Week of 46^4 hours
Felt hat makers.

I1) Scotland, 46 hours.
(2) Female workers, 44 hours.

-

26

-

Terms of Collective Agreements
Boot and Shoe Trade. The Agreement of 13 Februar}' 1919
between the Incorporated Federated Associations of Boot and Shoe
Manufacturers of Great Britain and Ireland and the National
Union of Boot and Shoe Operatives, which is still in force, established
a normal working week of 48 hours as from 31 March 1919. Either
side may, on or after 30 September 1920, give six months' notice
to terminate or revise the agreement. It is agreed that employers
shall give reasonable notice of their intention to work overtime,
such notice to be posted in the departments concerned. Overtime rates are provided for as follows : time and a quarter for day
workers and 25 per cent, over piece workers' rates for piece
workers and on Saturdays, time and a half for day workers and
50 per cent, over piece-work rates for piece workers.

/. fiood, Drink, Tobacco, and Distributive

Trades

Estimated Number of Workers
Food and drink
Tobacco
Distributive trades

439,820
47,300
996,160
Total

1,483,280

Hours of Work
Week of 48 hours
(a) Bakers, England and Wales (1).
(b) Brewery workers (2).
(c) Sugar, confectionery, and food preserving.
(d) Tobacco, Great Britain.
(e) Milk distribution, England and Wales.
(f) Employees of co-operative societies (3) :
(i)
London (4).
(ii) Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cheshire, North Wales and
parts of North Staffordshire, North Derbyshire, and
Westmoreland (5).
(in) Midlands and Wales, Monmouthshire, and Scotland («).
(iv) Gloucester and Hereford and southern counties.
(x) Scotland, 47 hours where staff is less then 5 adults and 2 lads,
45 in other cases.
(2) Sheffield men inside brewery and women in bottling departments,
47 ; Monmouthshire, 47 ; Edinburgh, 47 hours.
(3) Northumberland, Durham, Cumberland, North Riding of Yorkshire
and parts
of Westmoreland, clerks, 40 ; other workers, 44 hours.
(4s) Clerks, 42 hours.
( ) Clerks, 40 hours.
(6) Clerks (Midlands), 44 ; (South Wales), 46 hours.

— 27 —

Week of 47 hours
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)

Flour mill day workers (1).
Cocoa and chocolate confectionery workers (2).
Aerated waters, England and Wales.
Fruit preserving (3).
Beer bottling (London).

Other hours
Rice Mills, Liverpool ; males, 50 hours, females, 47.

K.

Transport

Workers

Terms of Collective A greements
(a) Railway Workers. An agreement of 30 January 1919 between representatives of the railway companies and the trade
unions contains the following provisions :
The principle of the 8-hour day for railwaymen is to be
given effect to as from 1 February 19.19, on the basis of the existing conditions of service, and, where it is not found practicable to
reduce the working hours to 8, overtime will be paid for all time
worked after the expiration of 8 working hours.
When a man's work has been arranged on a weekly basis,
overtime will be paid after 48 hours' work.
In March 1919 certain interpretations of the above agreement
were agreed upon between the parties, which contained the following provisions :
(1) t h e s t a n d a r d week's work t o consist of -J8 hours ;
(2) t h e s t a n d a r d week's wages, exclusive of a n y p a y m e n t for o v e r t i m e or
S u n d a y d u t y , t o be g u a r a n t e e d t o all employees who are available
for d u t y t h r o u g h o u t t h e week, b u t t u r n s c o m m e n c i n g on a S a t u r d a y
a n d finishing on a S u n d a y shall form p a r t of t h e g u a r a n t e e d week
and all t u r n s c o m m e n c i n g on a S u n d a y shall be excluded from, and
be paid for i n d e p e n d e n t l y of, t h e g u a r a n t e e d week.
On t h e L o n d o n U n d e r g r o u n d R a i l w a y s split t u r n s of d u t y are
t o be continued, b u t in t h e case of m o t o r m e n a n d c o n d u c t o r s are
n o t t o exceed 5 per cent, of t h e t o t a l duties on each line, w i t h a
m a x i m u m spread-over of t'2 hours a n d w i t h a m a x i m u m of I1/.,
h o u r s ' a c t u a l work. T i m e beyond either this spread-over or a c t u a l
w o r k is t o be paid for a t o v e r t i m e r a t e s . G a t e m e n working t h e
s a m e t u r n s as m o t o r m e n will be governed b y t h e s a m e conditions,
b u t t h o s e employed solely for s t r e n g t h e n i n g t r a i n s m a y all h a v e
t o w o r k split t u r n s u n d e r t h e conditions described a b o v e .
Ln t h e e v e n t of a m a n being a v a i l a b l e for d u t y on a n y w e e k d a y
he shall be g u a r a n t e e d a d a y ' s p a v subject t o a r r a n g e m e n t s being
m a d e t o work certain grades a week of 18 h o u r s in five long a n d one
(') Shift w o r k e r s , 44 h o u r s .
(a) Shift w o r k e r s (men 21 y e a r s a n d o v e r ) , 44 h o u r s .
(3) Also certain b r a n c h e s of s u g a r a n d confectionery.

— 28 —
short turn. In these cases wages shall be paid for the number of
hours of each turn of duty as rostered. Overtime is to be paid in
all cases where a man exceeds on one day his rostered turn of duty.
Men called on duty for emergency work outside their rostered
turn of duty are to be paid as follows : for 4 hours or less payment
to be at the agreed overtime rate (minimum, quarter of a day),
and such turns of duty shall not be counted as a full turn of duty nor
as a part of the guaranteed week. Emergency or special duty
occupying more than 4 hours is to be treated as one of the six turns
of duty for the week if the man is unfitted by the emergency duty
to take up his succeeding ordinary turn of duty.
All time worked on weekdays in excess of the standard hours is
to be paid for at the rate of time and a quarter, each day to stand by
itself for overtime purposes. All ordinary time worked between
10 p.m. and 4 a.m. is to be paid at the rate of time and a quarter ;
all overtime worked between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m. to be paid at the
inclusive rate of time and a half.
¡Sunday (12 midnight Saturday to 12 midnight Sunday) to be
paid for at time and a half.]

In January 1922 certain claims in regard to hours of work
were made by the Scottish railway companies and submitted to
the Industrial Court for decision. The award of the Court was
subsequently adopted in March 1922, but made retroactive from
1 February, by agreement between the English companies and the
trade unions. It confirms the principle of the 8-hour day on condition that
(a) In cases where economy will accrue men may be rostered up
to nine hours a day, any time worked over eight hours being paid
for at the agreed overtime rate.
(b) The arrangement under which men are worked for five
long turns and one short turn in the week shall be continued.
(c) A spread-over up to 10 hours a day may be put into
operation as soon as may be after the date of this decision in those
cases where the men can be booked off and free from duty for the
period in excess of the rostered day ; also, where circumstances
render it essential, and it can be shown that further economy will
accrue, the spread-over may be extended to a maximum of 12 hours
a day. This provision (c) shall be applicable to all grades (except
drivers, firemen, and guards) employed at such stations as are
typified by the examples shown in the statements presented to the
Board.

(b) Tramway Workers, including London Omnibus Workers.
An agreement dated 20 March 1919 established a working week
of 48 hours, 8 hours to constitute a normal day's work. The
question of spread-over time was left to be settled by the individual
undertaking with trade union representatives. Time and a half
rates were to be paid for work done on the four Bank holidays,
double time for work done on Christmas Day, time and a quarter
for Sunday work and, for overtime, time and a quarter for the
first 2 hours and time and a half for any additional work in
respect of each day exceeding 9 hours, such overtime to be calculated from the termination of 8 hours' work. Six days holiday
with pay annually was granted for 12 months' continuous service.
A new agreement for tramway workers of March 1922 provides that the average daily schedule shall in future be 48 hours
for a week of six days. No schedule shall be less than 44 hours

— 29 —

nor more than 52. Each authority will deal with spread-over
duty in conference with the local trade union representatives.
The holiday period is fixed at eight days annually, with pay, after
12 months' continuous service. Christmas Day is to be worked
when required and double ordinary weekday rates paid for time
actually worked. Time and a quarter is to be paid for the first
two hours' overtime and time and a half rates for all time worked
after the first two hours.
(c) Dockers. An agreement was concluded on 11 August 1922
under which the 44-hour week and the guaranteed time minimum
is maintained. Work is distributed into eleven shifts of 4 hours
each in the week. The remainder of the agreement provides for
reductions in wages. The agreement, which has not yet been
signed, will remain in force until 1 January 1924.

-

31

-

Proposed Legislation
A Bill concerning the 8-hour day was laid before Parliament
on 18 August 1919. This Bill was the result of the work of the
Provisional Joint Committee of workers and employers set up by
the National Industrial Conference of February 1919. The Bill
was specially criticised on the ground that seamen and agricultural
workers were not included in its scope (x). After further consultation with the Provisional Joint Committee the Ministry of
Labour drafted a new Bill which included agricultural workers.
This second Bill, however, has never been laid before Parliament.
At the 21st Annual Conference of the Labour Party, held at
Brighton from 21 to 24 June 1921, the London Trades Council
or mally moved the following resolution, which was unanimously
agreed to :
This Conference instructs the Parliamentary Labour Party
to introduce in the House of Commons a Bill for a 44-hour working
week, as the long hours worked by certain trades, assisted by the
most up-to-date machinery, have caused such a surplus of commodities in the market that hundreds of thousands are unemployed
through this over-production, whereas a shorter working week, if
made compulsory, would lead to an improvement in the health
and happiness of the community."

(*) See INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE:
N o . 15, 20 A p r . 1921, p . 450.

Official Bulletin, Vol.111,