And whereas the said new Trade Board gave notice on 6th December, 1915, that they had varied certain of the minimum time-rates for female workers in the said trade, and the rates as varied were made obligatory by order of the Board of Trade, dated 7th June, 1916;(a)

And whereas the term of office of the said Trade Board expired on 22nd August, 1916, and a new Trade Board was established by the Minister of Labour under the said Trade Boards Act for the said trade on 29th January, 1917, for the period of four years commencing 29th January, 1917, and thereafter until dissolved by order of the Minister of Labour, and the said new Trade Board was constituted in accordance with the Regulations, dated 18th October, 1916, (b) made by the Board of Trade in substitution for those dated 27th April, 1910;

And whereas the said Trade Board gave notice on 13th August, 1917, that they had varied the minimum time-rates of wages for male and female workers in the said trade;

And whereas the said Trade Board gave notice on 7th January, 1918, that they had varied the minimum time-rates of wages for male and female workers in the said trade, and the rates as varied were made obligatory by order of the Minister of Labour, dated 8th July, 1918; (c)

And whereas the said Trade Board gave notice on 27th July, 1918, that they proposed further to vary the minimum time-rates of wages for male and female workers in the said trade;

And whereas by Section 3 (7) of the Trade Boards Act, 1918, (d) which came into operation on 1st October, 1918, it is provided as follows:

Where notice of a proposal to fix, cancel, or vary a minimum rate has been duly given by a Trade Board before the date of the commencement of this Act and the Board have not before that date proceeded to fix, cancel, or vary the rate, the notice shall have effect as though this Act had been in force on the date on which the notice was given and the notice had been duly given thereunder, except that objections may be lodged with the Board for a period of three months from the date of the notice.

And whereas by Section 4 of the said Trade Boards Act, 1918, it is, amongst other things, provided as follows:-

(1) Where a Trade Board have fixed any minimum rate of

wages, not being a special minimum piece-rate, or have cancelled or varied any such rate, they shall forthwith send notification thereof to the Minister, and the notification may include a statement as to the date as from which the Board suggest that the rate or the cancellation or variation should become effective.

(Great Britain).

(2) The Minister on receipt of a notification under this section with respect to any matter shall forthwith take the matter into his consideration, and, unless he thinks it necessary to refer the matter back to the Trade Board for reconsideration, shall, as soon as may be, make an order confirming the rate, or the cancellation or variation, as the case may be.

In any case where an order is to be made by the Minister under the foregoing provision he shall, unless in his opinion the special circumstances of the case make it necessary or desirable to postpone the making of the order, make the order within one month from the date on which the notification from the Trade Board is received.

(3) The Minister shall as soon as may be after he has made an order under this section send notification thereof to the Trade Board concerned, and the Trade Board shall, as soon as may be after receiving the notification, give notice of the making of the order and the contents thereof.

(4) Any such minimum rate as aforesaid, or the cancellation or variation of any such rate, shall become effective as from the date specified in that behalf in the order by which it is confirmed.

The date to be so specified shall be a date subsequent to the date of the order, and where as respects any employer who pays wages at intervals not exceeding seven days the date so specified does not correspond with the beginning of the period for which wages are paid by that employer, the rate shall become effective as from the beginning of the next such period following the date specified in the order.

(5) Sections five and seven of the principal Act (which relate respectively to orders giving obligatory effect to minimum rates of wages and to the operation of a minimum rate which has not been made obligatory) are hereby repealed;

And whereas, after considering the objections lodged with them, the said Trade Board sent notification to the Minister of Labour on 14th November, 1918, that they had varied the minimum time-rates of wages for male and female workers in the said trade, and the rates as varied are set out in the Schedule hereto;

Now, therefore, I, the Right Honourable George H. Roberts, Minister of Labour, in pursuance of the powers in me vested, as before recited, do by this Order confirm the said minimum time-rates of wages as varied by the said Trade Board and set out in the said Schedule hereto; and I specify the sixteenth day of December, 1918, as the date from which the said minimum time-rates shall become effective in cases in which they are applicable on all persons employing labour and on all persons, employed in the said trade. Provided that where as respects

any employer who pays wages at intervals not exceeding seven days, the date aforesaid does not correspond with the beginning of the period for which wages are paid by that employer the rates shall become effective as from the beginning of the next full pay period following the date specified as aforesaid.

Dated this 11th day of December, 1918.

Geo. H. Roberts,

Minister of Labour.

Schedule.

I. GENERAL MINIMUM TIME-RATES OF WAGES FOR MALE WORKERS.

Section A.

The minimum (or lowest) time-rate for male workers in the trade of making boxes, or parts thereof, made wholly or partially of paper, cardboard, chip or similar material, shall (subject to the provisions of this Notice as to learners) be as follows, clear of all deductions, that is to say:

9d. per hour.

Section B.

(1) In lieu of the above rate male "learners" shall receive the following minimum or lowest time-rates, clear of all deductions, that is to say:

(2) The learners' rates are weekly rates based on a week of 52 hours, but they shall be subject to a proportionate deduction or increase according as the number of hours actually spent by the learner in the factory or workshop in any week is less or more than 52.

(3) A male learner is a worker under 21 years of age who while employed is engaged during the whole or a substantial part of his time in learning some branch or process of the trade.

Section C.

The above minimum time-rates are without prejudice to workers who are earning higher rates of wages.

(Great Britain).

II.-GENERAL MINIMUM TIME-RATES OF WAGES FOR FEMALE WORKERS.

Section (1).

The minimum (or lowest) time-rates for female workers in the trade of making boxes or parts thereof made wholly or partially of paper, cardboard, chip or similar material, shall (subject to the provisions of this Notice as to learners) be as follows, clear of all deductions:

(a) For Female Workers other than Home

5ąd. per hour. 52d.

(a) In lieu of the above rates female learners, as hereinafter defined, and no other persons, shall receive the following minimum (or lowest) time-rates of wages, that is to say:

(b) The minimum (or lowest) time-rates for learners under 14 years of age shall be 8s. 6d. per week, and on reaching the age of 14 they shall be entitled to the amounts shown in Column I. above as if they had commenced at 14.

(c) The above rates are weekly rates based on a week of 52 hours, but they shall be subject to a proportionate deduction or increase according as the number of hours actually spent in any week by the learner in the factory or workshop is less or more than 52.

(d) A learner shall cease to be a learner and be entitled to the full minimum time-rate for a worker, applicable to her under Section (1) upon the fulfilment of the following conditions:

Age of entering upon employment.

Under 15 years of age

15 and under 17 years of age 17 and under 20 years of age 20 years of age and over

Conditions.

the completion of not less than 4 years'
employment

and the attainment of the age of 18 years.
the completion of 3 years' employment.
the completion of 2 years' employment.
the completion of 1 year's employment.

A learner returning to the trade after absence shall not serve a longer period as a learner than would be required if she were entering the trade for the first time.

(e) For the purposes of reckoning the minimum time-rate applicable to a learner who has had previous employment in the trade, and the length of time during which she may continue to be employed as a learner, the provisions of this Section shall be held to apply to the whole period of her employment in the trade.

Section (3).

A female learner is a worker who:

(i) Is employed by an employer who provides such learner with reasonable facilities for practically and efficiently learning the branch or branches of the trade (as carried on by the employer subject to the provisions of this Section) in which the learner is for the time being employed; provided that no person shall be deemed to be a learner if employed for a longer period than six months on any one or more than twelve months on any two or more of the following processes, viz. Carrying about; Collecting work from benches and machines; Lidding-up (other than round boxes); Tying-up and Nesting, except in so far as such processes may be incidental to any other process upon which the worker may be engaged; and

(ii) Has received a certificate or has been registered in accordance with rules from time to time laid down by the Trade Board, or has made application for such certificate or registration, which has been duly acknowledged and is still under consideration. Provided that the certification or registration of a learner may be cancelled if the other conditions of learnership are not complied with.

Provided that an employer may employ a female learner on her first employment without a certificate or registration for a probation period not exceeding eight weeks, but the probation period shall be included in her period of learnership.