PART V.

Regulation of Wages of Members of Staffs of Shops.

Shop Wages Board.

41. —(1) On the commencement of this Part of this Act there shall be established a board (in this Act referred to as the Board) to be styled and known as the Shop Wages Board to fulfil the functions assigned to it by this Act.

(2) The Board shall consist of three members namely—

(a) a chairman (in this Act referred to as the chairman), and

(b) two ordinary members.

(3) The members of the Board shall be nominated by the Minister from time to time as occasion requires.

(4) One of the ordinary members shall be a person who is in the opinion of the Minister representative of proprietors of shops, and the other ordinary member shall be a person who is in the opinion of the Minister representative of members of the staffs of shops.

(5) The Chairman shall hold office during the pleasure of the Minister.

(6) Each ordinary member of the Board, unless he sooner dies, resigns, or becomes disqualified, shall hold office for such period, not exceeding five years, as the Minister may fix at the time of his nomination, but shall be eligible for renomination.

(7) If and whenever an ordinary member of the Board is adjudged bankrupt, or makes a composition or arrangement with his creditors, or is sentenced by a court of competent jurisdiction to suffer imprisonment or penal servitude, or ceases to be ordinarily resident in the State or absents himself from all sittings of the Board for a period of three months without the permission of the Minister he shall be disqualified from holding the office of ordinary member of the Board.

(8) Whenever it appears to the Minister that on account of illness or for other sufficient reason a member of the Board is temporarily unable to discharge his duties as such member, the Minister may appoint a person to act as a member for such period (not exceeding the duration of such inability) as he shall think proper, and every person so appointed to act as a member of the Board shall during the period for which he is so appointed be a member of the Board in the place of such first-mentioned member.

(9) The quorum at any meeting of the Board shall be all three members.

42. —(1) The Board shall make regulations for the governance of its proceedings and may by such regulations make provision for all or any of the following matters, that is to say:—

(a) the times and places of meetings of the Board;

(b) the persons to whom notice of meetings of the Board shall be given;

(c) the form and manner in which submissions shall be made and evidence given to the Board, and in particular whether such evidence shall be given viva voce or in writing;

(d) the attendance for viva voce examination of persons who have made submissions or given evidence in writing;

(e) the admission or exclusion of any person to or from the meetings of the Board;

(f) such matters as appear to the Board to be necessary or expedient for the proper conduct of its business.

(2) Regulations made under this section shall not have any force or effect unless and until they have been approved by the Minister.

43. —(1) The Board shall have all such powers, rights, and privileges for enforcing the attendance of witnesses and examining them on oath (which any member of the Board is hereby authorised to administer) or otherwise, and for compelling the production of documents as are vested in the High Court, or a judge thereof in respect of the trial of an action, and a summons signed by any one or more members of the Board shall be equivalent to and have the like effect as a formal process issued by the High Court for enforcing the attendance of witnesses and compelling the production of documents.

(2) If any person—

(a) on being duly summoned as a witness before the Board makes default in attending, or

(b) being in attendance as a witness refuses to take an oath legally required by the Board to be taken, or to produce any document in his power and control legally required by the Board to be produced by him, or to answer any question to which the Board may legally require an answer, or

(c) does any other thing which would, if the Board were a Court of Justice, having power to commit for contempt of court, be contempt of such court,

the Board may certify the offence of that person under their hands to the High Court and that court may, after such inquiry as it thinks proper to make, punish or take steps for the punishment of that person in like manner as if he had been guilty of contempt of the said court.

(3) A witness before the Board shall be entitled to the same immunities and privileges as if he were a witness before the High Court.

Minimum Rates of Wages.

44. —(1) Where—

(a) a member of the staff of a shop claims that his wages are unduly low, and

(b) no rules under this Part of this Act fixing minimum wages and applicable to such member are in force,

such member or a person who claims to be representative of the class of members of the staffs of shops to which such member belongs may send to the Minister an application (in this Part of this Act referred to as a minimum wages application) to have a minimum rate of wages fixed for that class of members of staffs of shops situate in the area specified in such application.

(2) Any person making a minimum wages application shall if so requested by the Minister furnish such particulars or information as the Minister may deem necessary for the consideration of the application and if any requirement of the Minister under this sub-section is not complied with the Minister may refuse to consider the application.

45. —On receipt of a minimum wages application in respect of a particular class of members of the staffs of shops situate in a particular area the Minister shall, subject however to the provisions of sub-section (2) of the immediately preceding section, consider such application, and, if satisfied that such application is well-founded and that, in case such application is not made by a person who belongs to that class, the applicant is in his opinion representative of such class, shall request the Board to fix minimum rates of wages for that class of members of the staffs of shops situate in the area specified in such request.

46. —(1) Where the Minister requests the Board to fix minimum rates of wages for any particular class of members of the staffs of shops situate in a particular area, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say.—

(a) the Board shall hold an investigation into the subject matter of such request, but shall before commencing such investigation publish, in some newspaper circulating in such area, a notice specifying their intention to hold such investigation and inviting interested parties to submit evidence, and shall consider any evidence so submitted;

(b) on the conclusion of such investigation the Board shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, make rules fixing the minimum rates of wages for that class of members of the staffs of shops situate in such area, and may by such rules fix different minimum rates for different groups (defined in such manner and by reference to such things as the Board thinks proper) of that class of members of the staffs of shops and in respect of different kinds (defined in such manner and by reference to such things as the Board thinks proper) of those shops in that area.

(2) Where an agreement has been signed (whether before or after the passing of this Act) by or on behalf of a body or bodies substantially representative, in the opinion of the Minister, of proprietors of shops of a particular class in a particular area and by or on behalf of a body or bodies substantially representative, in the opinion of the Minister, of a particular class of members of the staffs of such shops whereby rates of salary, wages or other reward payable to such members are regulated or restricted, and such agreement is sent to the Minister by one or more of the parties thereto, with a request that it may be referred to the Board under this sub-section, the Minister may, in his discretion, either refer or refuse to refer such agreement to the Board, and, if the Minister so refers such agreement to the Board, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) the Board shall hold an investigation into the subject matter of such agreement, but shall before commencing such investigation publish in some newspaper circulating in such area, a notice specifying their intention to hold such investigation and inviting interested parties to submit evidence, and shall consider any evidence so submitted;

(b) on the conclusion of such investigation, the Board shall do one of the following things, that is to say:—

(i) make, subject to the provisions of this Act, rules fixing minimum rates of wages (which shall be the same as the rates of wages specified in such agreement) for such class, as the Board thinks proper and specifies in such rules, of members of staffs of shops of such class, as the Board thinks proper and specifies in such rules, situate in such area as the Board thinks proper and specifies or delimits in or by such rules, or

(ii) report to the Minister that in their opinion it is not expedient to make such rules.

47. —(1) Any person may apply to the Minister to have any rules fixing minimum rates of wages which are in force amended in specified respects or revoked.

(2) Where an application is made to the Minister under sub-section (1) of this section the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) in case the Minister is satisfied that the applicant is a person representative of a substantial proportion of members of the staffs of shops or proprietors of shops to which the rules the subject of such application apply the Minister shall refer the application to the Board;

(b) in any other case the Minister may in his discretion either refer or refuse to refer the application to the Board.

(3) Where an application under this section in relation to any rules fixing minimum rates of wages which are in force, is referred to the Board, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) the Board shall hold an investigation into such application but shall before commencing such investigation publish in some newspaper circulating in the area to which such rules apply a notice specifying their intention to hold such investigation and inviting interested parties to submit evidence and shall hear any evidence so submitted;

(b) if on the conclusion of such investigation the Board are of opinion that such rules should not be amended or revoked, the Board shall report to the Minister accordingly;

(c) if on the conclusion of such investigation the Board are of opinion that such rules should be amended or revoked the Board shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, make rules amending or revoking (as they think fit) such first-mentioned rules.

48. —The Board shall, before making any rules under this Part of this Act cause a draft of the proposed rules to be prepared, and shall, before making such rules, cause to be inserted in some newspaper circulating in the area to which such rules are intended to relate a notice stating the terms of such draft, and shall consider any representations in relation to such terms made to them not later than thirty days after the publication of such notice.

49. —(1) Any rules made by the Board under this Part of this Act shall be submitted to the Minister, as soon as may be after they are made, and thereupon the Minister shall, after consideration of such rules, make an order confirming such rules either without modification or with such modifications (either by way of addition, omission or variation) as, after consultation with the Board, he thinks fit, and upon the making of such order, such rules shall, subject to such modifications (if any) as may have been made therein by the Minister, come into operation on such date (not being earlier than the date of such order) as may be specified in such order.

(2) Every order made under this section shall embody a copy of the rules to which it relates.

(3) Where the Minister makes an order under this section confirming any rules, the Minister shall cause notice of the making of such order to be published in the Iris Oifigiúil.

50. —In any proceedings under this Part of this Act the production of a copy of an order under the immediately preceding section confirming any rules made under this Part of this Act shall, if such copy purports to be published by the Stationery Office, be prima facie evidence of the making of such rules and of the contents thereof.

51. —(1) Where any rules regulating minimum rates of wages are for the time being in force, the proprietor of a shop shall pay to each member of the staff of such shop to whom such rates are applicable wages at a rate not less than the appropriate minimum rate under such rules clear of all deductions.

(2) If the proprietor of a shop acts in contravention of this section, such proprietor shall be guilty of an offence under this section.

(3) In any proceedings against the proprietor of a shop under this section, it shall lie with such proprietor to prove that he has paid wages at not less than the minimum rate.

(4) Where the proprietor of a shop is convicted of an offence under this section the court may, in addition to the penalty imposed by the court, order such proprietor to pay to the member of the staff of such shop in relation to whom the offence was committed such sum as appears to the court to be due by such proprietor to such member on account of wages; the wages being calculated on the basis of the minimum rate payable under the rules regulating minimum rates of wages applicable to such member, but the power to order payment of wages under this provision shall not be in derogation of any right of such person to recover wages by any other proceedings.

(5) Any agreement for the payment of wages in contravention of this section or for abstaining to exercise any right of enforcing the payment of wages in accordance with this section shall be void.

(6) For the purposes of this section the word “deduction” includes deductions for or in respect of any matter whatsoever (other than deductions under the National Insurance Act, 1911, as amended by subsequent enactments, or the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1920, as amended by subsequent enactments, or the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Act, 1935 (No. 29 of 1935), as amended by subsequent enactments, or deductions authorised by any Act to be made from wages in respect of contributions to any superannuation or other provident fund), and notwithstanding that they are deductions which may lawfully be made from wages under the provisions of the Truck Acts, 1831 to 1896, and where any payment being a payment authorised to be received by an employer under section 1 of the Truck Act, 1896, is made by a member of the staff of a shop to his employer, the employer shall, for the purposes, of the foregoing provision be deemed to have deducted that amount from wages.

52. —(1) Where any rules regulating minimum rates of wages are in force and are applicable to a member of the staff of a particular shop, it shall be the duty of the proprietor of such shop to keep at such shop such records as are necessary to show that such rules are being complied with in relation to such member, and to permit an inspector to inspect at all reasonable times and take copies of such records.

(2) If the proprietor of a shop—

(a) fails or neglects to keep at such shop such records as are required by this section to be kept, or refuses to allow an inspector to inspect such records or take copies thereof at any reasonable time, or

(b) wilfully or negligently makes in such records any entry which is false or misleading in any material particular,

such proprietor shall be guilty of an offence under this section.

(3) In this section the word “inspector” means a person authorised in writing by the Minister to exercise the powers conferred on an inspector by this section.

53. —The provisions of this Part of this Act shall not apply in respect of any member of the staff of a shop who is employed as an apprentice under rules made by an apprenticeship committee under the Apprenticeship Act, 1931 (No. 56 of 1931).