S.I. No. 224/1977 - Employment Regulation Order (Shirtmaking Joint Labour Committee), 1977.

S.I. No. 224 of 1977.

EMPLOYMENT REGULATION ORDER (SHIRTMAKING JOINT LABOUR COMMITTEE), 1977.

WHEREAS the Labour Court (hereinafter called "the Court") pursuant to the provisions of Section 43 of the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 (hereinafter called "the Act") made Employment Regulation Order (Shirtmaking Joint Labour Committee), 1975, dated 20th November ( S.I. No. 270 of 1975 (hereinafter called "the said Order"), fixing the statutory minimum rates of remuneration and regulating the statutory conditions of employment of workers in relation to whom the Shirtmaking Joint Labour Committee (hereinafter called the Committee") operates;

AND WHEREAS the Committee has submitted to the Court the proposals set out in the Schedule hereto for fixing the statutory minimum rates of remuneration and regulating the statutory conditions of employment of workers in relation to whom the Committee operates;

AND WHEREAS the provisions of Section 43 of the Act have been complied with;

NOW, THEREFORE, the Court, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by Section 43 of the Act hereby order as follows:—

(1) This Order may be cited as the Employment Regulation Order (Shirtmaking Joint Labour Committee), 1977.

(2) Effect is hereby given to the proposals set out in the Schedule hereto.

(3) The provisions set out in the Schedule hereto shall have effect as from 11th July, 1977 and as from that date the said order shall be revoked.

2.

SCHEDULE.

PART I.

SHIRTMAKING AND TIEMAKING.

GENERAL MINIMUM TIME-RATES AND PIECE-WORK BASIS TIME-RATES FOR WORKERS EMPLOYED IN JOB CLASSES REPRESENTED BELOW, OR IN JOBS EQUAL IN SKILL, EFFORT AND RESPONSIBILITY TO JOBS REPRESENTED BELOW, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THE EQUAL PAY ACT.

SECTION I.—GENERAL MINIMUM TIME-RATES

SECTION III.—PIECE-WORK BASIS TIME RATE FOR ALL WORKERS:

Workers (including learners as defined in Part VI) when employed on Piece-Work for which no General Minimum Piece-Rate has been fixed by the Committee, shall be paid for each operation on which so employed a Piece-Rate not less than that which would yield in the circumstances of the case to an ordinary worker at least the equivalent of the rate applicable to the relevant Job Class.

PART II.

GENERAL MINIMUM PIECE-RATE FOR HOME-WORKERS.

PART III.

SECTION I.—NORMAL WORKING HOURS

The normal number of hours to be worked by workers in relation to whom the Committee operates shall be 40 hours.

SECTION II.—OVERTIME RATES AND STATUTORY HOLIDAYS.

Time worked in any week in excess of the declared number of hours and all time worked between 1 p.m. on Saturday and normal starting time on Monday morning and all time worked on public statutory holidays shall be regarded as overtime and shall be paid for at the following rates:

(a) For the first four hours overtime, one and a quarter time the minimum rate otherwise applicable, i.e. time-and-a-quarter.

(b) For overtime after the first four hours, one and a half-times the minimum rate otherwise applicable, i.e. time-and-a-half.

(c) For overtime worked between 1 p.m. on Saturday and normal starting time on Monday morning, twice the minimum rate otherwise applicable i.e. double time.

(d) Where a worker is required to work on a statutory public holiday he shall be paid at the rate of double time for that day and in addition shall be granted a day off in lieu with pay.

PART IV.

ANNUAL HOLIDAYS.

Annual holidays shall be granted in accordance with the Holidays (Employees) Act, 1973 .

PART V.

WORKERS IN RELATION TO WHOM THE COMMITTEE OPERATES.

The Minimum Rates of Remuneration and Conditions of Employment set out in this Order shall apply subject to the provisions of the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 , and of this Order, to all workers in respect of any item during which they are employed in those branches of the Trade which are specified in the Trade Boards (Shirtmaking) Order 1920, that is to say:

(1) The making from textile fabrics of shirts, collars, cuffs, pyjamas, aprons, chefs' caps, hospital ward caps and other washable clothing worn by Male persons;

(2) the making of women's collars and cuffs and of nurses' washing belts, where carried on in association with or in conjunction with the making of the before-mentioned articles;

(3) the making of neckties worn by Male persons and of neckties worn by Female persons, where made in association with or in conjunction with the making of neckties worn by Male persons;

Including:—

Laundering, smoothing, folding, ornamenting, boxing, packing, warehousing and all other operations, incidental to or appertaining to the making of any of the above mentioned articles:—

But excluding:—

(1) The making of articles which are knitted or are made from knitted fabrics;

(2) the making of handkerchiefs, mufflers, gloves, socks, stockings, spats, gaiters' bonnets, hats or caps (other than chefs' caps and hospital ward caps);

(3) the making of boys' washing suits;

(4) the making of washable clothing to be worn by children without distinction of sex;

(5) the making of any articles, the making of which is included in the Trade Boards (Tailoring) Order, 1919.

PART VI.

DEFINITION OF WORKERS.

A SPECIAL OR MEASURE CUTTER is a Worker who—

(a) is able to take a complete set of measures and cut from model patterns; and

(b) has sufficient technical knowledge to alter patterns (excluding Stock patterns).

A LEARNER CUTTER is a Worker who—

(a) is employed under a verbal or written agreement by an employer who undertakes to provide the Learner with reasonable and effective facilities for learning the Cutting Branch of the Trade including the operations of Hooking up, Folding, Marking in (stencilling) or Marking out (pencilling) and Dividing and

(b) has received a certificate or has been registered in accordance with rules from time to time laid down by the Committee or has made application for such certificate or registration which has been duly acknowledged and is still under consideration. Provided that the certificate or registration of a Learner Cutter shall become inavlid if at any time during Learnership the provisions set out in this Schedule relating thereto are not complied with. Provided that an employer may employ a Learner Cutter on first employment in the Cutting Branch of the Shirtmaking Trade as defined in this Schedule without a certificate or registration for a probationary period not exceeding four weeks but in the event of such Learner being continued thereafter in his employment the probationary period shall be included in his period of learnership.

HOME WORKER OR OUT WORKER: A Home Worker, or Out Worker, is a person who works in any place not under the control or management of the employer.

A SPECIAL MACHINIST (Job Class 4): is a person who operates a sewing machine in the process of preparation and assembly of a garment, where manipulative skill is required to follow contours with many changes of direction requiring hand-eye co-ordination and where the accuracy of the work seriously affects the quality of the finished garment.

ALL OPERATIONS (Job Class 5): All operations of skill, effort and responsibility which do not qualify for Job Class 4 or higher. This class includes operations which are manually, semi-automatically or automatically controlled and where the range of decisions and the degree of mental concentration required on the part of the operator are less than those required for Job Class 4 or higher.

A LEARNER is a Worker who—

(a) is employed during the whole or a substantial part of the time learning any branch or process of the trade, by an employer who provides the Learner with reasonable facilities for such learning and

(b) has received a certificate of has been registered in accordance with rules from time to time laid down by the Joint Labour Committee or has made application for such certificate of registration which has been duly acknowledged and is still under consideration.

Provided that—

(c) The certification of registration of a Learner shall become invalid if at any time during the learnership the provisions set out in this Schedule relating thereto are not complied with;

(d) An employer may employ a Learner on first employment in any branch or branches of the Trade as above described without a certificate of registration for a probationary period not exceeding four weeks; but in the event of such Learner being continued thereafter in the employment the probationary period shall be included in the period of learnership.

(e) Notwithstanding compliance with the conditions contained in this Schedule a person shall not be deemed to be a Learner if work is performed in a room used for dwelling purposes and is not in the employment of a parent or guardian.

(f) A Learner shall cease to be a Learner and shall be entitled to the full Minimum Time Rate upon the completion of two years employment;

(g) An application for a Learner's Certificate must be made to the Joint Labour Committee in respect of every worker whom it is desired to employ at the special lower rates fixed for Learners. Unless a Learner's Certificate has been obtained, or application has been made which has been acknowledged and is still under consideration and the other conditions of learnership laid down in this Part of the Schedule are complied with, the minimum rate payable is that for Workers other than Learners;

(h) For the purpose of determining the Minimum Rate applicable there shall be included in the calculation of the period of employment of a Learner one half of the period of such Learner's attendance at a Technical School for the purpose of receiving instruction in the Shirtmaking Trade from a teacher whose qualification has been approved by the Department of Education and who is employed by a Statutory Technical Instruction Committee;

(i) Such period of instruction in a Technical School shall not be regarded as "first employment in the branch or branches of the Trade" for the purpose of the provisions in (d) above relative to employment without a certificate of registration during the Learner's probationary period.

PART VII.

GENERAL.

In the case of any worker employed on Piece Work for which no General Minimum Piece Rate has been fixed, the Minimum Piece Rate payable shall be such as will yield in the circumstances of the case to an ordinary worker not less than the appropriate Basis Rate. In determining whether any piece-rate is sufficient to satisfy this condition regard must be had only to the earnings of ordinary workers, i.e. workers of ordinary skill and experience in the class or work in question and not to the earnings of workers of less than ordinary skill and experience, e.g. learners, apprentices and infirm workers.

For the purpose of the foregoing provisions the expression "Basis Rate" means the Piece-Work Basis Time-Rate fixed for the class of worker in question, or where no such Piece-Work Basis Time-Rate has been fixed, the General Minimum Time-Rate which has been fixed for that class of worker.

The above Minimum Rates of Wages shall be payable on the basis that all sewings and other materials are supplied by the employer.

PART VIII.

WAITING TIME.

Waiting Time to be paid for. A worker must be paid not less than the appropriate Minimum Rate in respect of all time during which he is present on the employer's premises unless the employer can prove that such worker was so present (a) without the employer's consent, expressed or implied, or (b) for some purpose unconnected with his work and other than waiting for work to be given him to perform; or unless the worker was present (c) only by reason of the fact that he was resident on the premises in which no work was being done.

A worker employed on piece-work is deemed during waiting-time to have been employed at the General Minimum Time-Rate Applicable.

PART IX.

SERVICE PAY.

Workers who have been in continuous employment with the one employer to be granted service pay on the following basis:—

No. of years Service with an employer

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Labour Court this 5th day of July, 1977.

J. G. McCAULEY.

A person authorised under Section 18 of the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 , to authenticate the Seal of the Court.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

This instrument fixes statutory minimum rates of pay and regulates conditions of employment as from 11th July, 1977 for workers employed in the Shirtmaking Trade. It is made by the Labour Court on the Recommendation of the Shirtmaking Joint Labour Committee.