S.I. No. 219/1950 - Apprenticeship Committee (No. 2) For The Furniture Trade (Confirmation of Rules) Order, 1950.


S.I. No. 219 of 1950.

APPRENTICESHIP COMMITTEE (No. 2) FOR THE FURNITURE TRADE (CONFIRMATION OF RULES) ORDER, 1950.

WHEREAS it is enacted by subsection (5) of section 8 of the Apprenticeship Act, 1931 (No. 56 of 1931), that every rule made by an apprenticeship committee under that section shall be submitted to the Minister for Industry and Commerce as soon as may be after it is made and no such rule shall be of any force or effect unless or until it is confirmed by order of the Minister :

AND WHEREAS it is enacted by subsection (1) of section 9 of the said Act that the said Minister may, in respect of any rule submitted to him by an apprenticeship committee under that Act, either by order confirm such rule or refuse to confirm such rule:

AND WHEREAS the Apprenticeship Committee (No. 2) for the Furniture Trade, being an apprenticeship committee established by the said Act, have, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by section 8 of the said Act, made the Rules set out in the Schedule to this Order, and have duly submitted those rules to the Minister for Industry and Commerce for confirmation by him in accordance with the said Act :

NOW, the Minister for Industry and Commerce, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by subsection (1) of section 9 of the Apprenticeship Act, 1931 (No. 56 of 1931), hereby orders as follows :—

1. This Order may be cited as the Apprenticeship Committee (No. 2) for the Furniture Trade (Confirmation of Rules) Order, 1950.

2. The Interpretation Act, 1937 (No. 38 of 1937), applies to this Order.

3. The Rules set out in the Schedule to this Order are hereby confirmed and shall come into operation on the 1st day of September, 1950.

SCHEDULE.

RULES MADE BY THE APPRENTICESHIP COMMITTEE (No. 2) FOR THE FURNITURE TRADE ON THE 18th DAY OF FEBRUARY, 1950.

PART I.—APPRENTICESHIP CLASSIFICATION RULES.

The Committee declare that employment in the Trade of the classes of persons specified hereunder, in the manner specified, shall constitute employment by way of apprenticeship in the Trade.

Classes of Persons.—Persons whose first employment in the Trade commences on or after the date these Rules come into force, and who are employed during any part of the hours of work in one or more of the undermentioned operations or who are engaged in assisting in any of such operations or any work preparatory or incidental thereto.

Manner of Employment.—Employment during any part of the hours of work on any of the undermentioned operations :

Class A.—Making, altering or repairing articles made wholly or mainly of wood, bamboo or cane, which are intended for use as furniture.

Carving or other ornamentation of such articles, or the veneering of wood or like operation if ancillary to and carried on in the same premises as any of the processes specified from A to C, included in this Part of the Schedule.

Class B.—Upholstering articles which are intended for use as furniture, whether such articles are made of wood, or of any substance other than wood, and the altering or repairing of the upholstery of such articles.

Upholstering seats and seating for theatres, cinemas, halls and other places of amusement or assembly, and the altering or repairing of the upholstery of such seats and seating.

Making, altering or repairing mattresses, palliasses, cushions, seats filled with hair, fibre, straw, flock, wool, rubber or other substitute for hair. Including : the operation of teasing hair.

Making, altering or repairing box spring, cane edge, cane laced, interior spring and reversible mattresses, cushions and seats.

Making, altering or repairing curtains and draperies, loose covers and window furnishings. The fixing of floor coverings.

Class C.—Polishing articles made wholly or mainly of wood, bamboo or cane, which are intended for use as furniture. Staining, enamelling, painting, japanning, lacquering, spraying and any other like operation, if such operation be ancillary to and carried on in the same premises as any of the processes specified for Classes A and B, included in this Part of the Schedule.

Class D.—Sawmilling, machining or turning of wood, and any other like operation, if such operation be ancillary to and carried on in the same premises as any of the processes previously mentioned in this part of the Schedule.

PART II.—RULES REGULATING THE PERIOD OF APPRENTICESHIP.

The Committee specify the period of apprenticeship in the Trade in the Apprenticeship District as being that indicated hereunder, in respect of each class of employees specified in Part I of this Schedule :—

Class of Employees

Period of Apprenticeship

Male Employees

Female Employees

Class A

Six years

Class B

Six years

Four years

Class C

Six years

Four years

Class D

Six years

PROVIDED THAT—

(1) the above periods shall be reduced by one year in the case of any male apprentice who has attended a Junior Day Technical School Course, as defined in Part V of this Schedule, for a period of two years ;

(2) an employer may employ an apprentice on his first employment in the Trade for a probationary period not exceeding six months ;

(3) the rules regulating the period of apprenticeship shall not apply in relation to such probationary period unless the employment of the apprentice in the Trade continues or is resumed thereafter;

(4) the rules other than the rules regulating the period of apprenticeship shall apply during and in relation to such probationary period ;

(5) where an apprentice is, through illness or accident, continuously absent from employment for a period in excess of three months, the appropriate year of his employment by way of apprenticeship shall be extended by a period equal to such excess period.

PART III.—RULES REGULATING THE MINIMUM RATES OF WAGES.

The Committee specify hereunder the minimum rates of wages (other than wages for overtime) to be paid to male and female apprentices in the Trade in the Apprenticeship District.

Male

Female

s.

d.

s.

d.

Rate per week during—

1st year of apprenticeship

22

0

22

0

2nd" "   "

30

0

30

0

3rd " "   "

43

0

40

0

4th " "   "

60

0

55

0

5th"  "   "

72

6

6th"  "   "

100

0

PROVIDED THAT—

(a) the above rates shall be payable, in the case of apprentices of 18 years of age or over, per week of 47 hours and, in the case of apprentices whose age is less than 18 years, per week of 40 hours ;

(b) a male apprentice who has attended an approved course of instruction as defined in the Rules Regulating the Educational qualifications of Apprentices for a period of two years shall, on being taken into employment in the Trade, be regarded for the purpose of determining the rate of wages payable to him, as being in his second year of apprenticeship ;

(c) for the purpose of calculating the minimum rate per hour to which an apprentice is entitled, the minimum rate per week to which the apprentice is entitled under these Rules shall be divided by the maximum number of hours which may be worked in any week by the apprentice ; and

(d) the above minimum rates are without prejudice to the payment of higher rates by agreement or otherwise.

PART IV.—RULES REGULATING THE MAXIMUM HOURS OF WORK.

The Committee prescribe 47 hours as being the maximum number of hours (exclusive of overtime) which may be worked in any week by apprentices of 18 years of age or over in the Trade in the Apprenticeship District and 40 hours as being the maximum number of hours (exclusive of overtime) which may be worked in any week by apprentices whose age is less than 18 years.

PART V.—RULES REGULATING THE EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS OF APPRENTICES.

The Committee prescribe that Employees at entry on apprenticeship must have :—

(a) The Primary School Certificate

or

(b) Completed not less than One Year's Attendance at a whole-time Junior Day Technical School course conducted by a Vocational Education Committee.

The Committee may, however, issue a certificate of exemption from this rule in the case of an apprentice who has not the exact qualifications prescribed in (a) or (b) of the rule but who possesses educational qualifications accepted by the Minister for Education as being reasonably equivalent.

PART VI.—RULES REGULATING THE AGE OF ENTRY ON APPRENTICESHIP.

The Committee prescribe that employment by way of apprenticeship in the Trade in the Apprenticeship District may commence on attainment of the age of 15 years and before attainment of the age of 18 years.

PART VII.—RULES REGULATING THE TRAINING OF APPRENTICES.

The Committee require that every apprentice shall be provided by his employer with reasonable facilities for learning all the operations and processes included in the class of the Trade to which the apprentice belongs as indicated in Part I of this Schedule. Every apprentice when engaged on any of such operations or processes shall work under the guidance of a journeyman, or an employer who has served his apprenticeship to such class of the Trade and who works at the Trade in the manner of a journeyman, and it shall be the duty of the employer to ensure that such apprentice shall be trained and instructed by himself if so qualified, or by such journeyman to the utmost of his own or the journeyman's knowledge and skill.

PART VIII.—RULES REGULATING THE NUMBER OF APPRENTICES.

The Committee fix in relation to each employer carrying on the Trade in the Apprenticeship District and specified in a list of such employers from time to time prepared by the Committee the number of apprentices whom the Committee consider should be employed by each such employer, as follows :—

Class A or B.—

NO apprentice unless three other workers* and thereafter ONE additional apprentice to each complete additional group of three other workers.*

Class C or D.—

ONE apprentice to one, two or three other workers* and thereafter ONE additional apprentice to each additional group of three other workers.*

*(i.e.—Other workers who have had, in the case of male workers not less than six years' employment in that class of the Trade and in the case of female workers not less than fouryears' employment in that class of the Trade. The word worker in this definition includes such a working employer as is referred to in the Rules Regulating the Training of Apprentices).

Provided that the number of male and female workers (other than apprentices) to be taken into calculation for the purpose of these Rules shall be the average weekly number of such workers as above defined employed by the employer during a period of 52 weeks ending on the date on which the apprentice concerned is taken into employment.

Provided, also, that where the Committee is satisfied in any particular case that special facts warrant an employer being exempted wholly or partially from the foregoing part of this Rule, the Committee by Order, may grant the required exemption.

PART IX.—RULES REGULATING APPRENTICESHIP PREMIUMS.

The Committee prohibit the taking by any employer of any fee, premium or other consideration in respect of the employment of any person by way of apprenticeship in the Trade in the Apprenticeship District.

PART X.—RULES REGULATING THE MINIMUM RATES OF OVERTIME WAGES.

The Committee specify hereunder the minimum rates of wages for overtime which every employer carrying on the Trade in the Apprenticeship District shall pay to every apprentice employed on overtime by him :—

For all time worked in excess of the maximum hours of work prescribed in Part IV of this Schedule, Time-and-a-half, but with a maximum of four hours in excess of the maximum hours as set out in Part IV of these Rules.

For all time worked on Sunday and Customary Public or Statutory Holidays and on the Short Day after 1 p.m. Double Time.

PART XI.—DEFINITION OF THE TRADE.

The Furniture Trade is defined in the first Schedule to the Apprenticeship Act (Furniture Trade) Special Order, 1936, as being :—

(1) Making, Altering, or Repairing of articles, made wholly or mainly of wood, bamboo or cane, which are intended for use as furniture, and the Polishing, Carving and Other Ornamentation of such articles.

(2) Upholstering of articles which are intended for use as furniture, whether such articles are made of wood, or of substances other than wood, and the altering or repairing of the upholstery of such articles.

(3) Upholstering of seats and seating : For Theatres, Cinemas, Halls and other places of amusement or assembly, and the altering or repairing of the upholstery of such seats and seating.

(4) Making, altering or repairing of curtains and draperies, loose covers and window furnishings, and the fixing of floor coverings.

(5) Making, altering or repairing of mattresses, palliasses, cushions, seats filled with hair, fibre, straw, flock, wool, rubber or other substitute for hair. Including : the operation of teasing hair.

(6) Making, altering or repairing of box spring, cane edge, cane laced, interior spring and reversible mattresses, cushions and seats.

Including : Any of the operations of sawmilling, machining, turning and veneering of wood, staining, enamelling, painting, japanning, lacquering, spraying, and any other like operation, if such operation be ancillary to and carried on in the same premises as any of the processes mentioned in preceding paragraphs of this Schedule.

But excluding : The making of Spiral Springs.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Industry and Commerce, this 18th day of August, 1950.

(Signed) J. WILLIAMS,

Deputy Secretary,

Department of Industry and Commerce.

A person authorised under Section 15 (1) of the Ministers and Secretaries Act, 1924 , to authenticate the Seal of the said Minister.