Engineering and Metal Works. 
39 
In the engineering trades, a short normal sweek is practically 
universal. In general engineering shops, the normal week is not above 
50 hours, and some have an even shorter week. The hours, especially in 
Bengal, are frequently arranged so as to give a half holiday on the last 
day of the week. In railway workshops, the common week is one of six 
days of 8 hours, and in some it is slightly shorter. Hours are similar in 
those metal working factories in which a 7 day week is not required. 
Of the engineering and metal works, a considerable proportion are owned 
by Government, but there is no noticeable variation in respect of hours 
between State factories of this type and those which are privately owned. 
Overtime working is not infrequent in engineering shops, but even with 
overtime, the average week would appear to be substantially below the 
legal maximum. 
Factories Running Continuously. 
The factories we have been considering work oh not more than 
6 days of the week. There is, however, a considerable number of 
factories in which, on account of the necessity of working the processes 
continuously, permission is granted to work on every day of the week. 
In most cases this permission is accompanied by a condition that the 
workers should receive a holiday once a fortnight. The great majority 
of these factories work on a system of 8 hour shifts, three shifts of workers 
being employed. This is true of a large number of workers employed 
in iron and steel works, in the larger sugar factories, in coke factories, and 
in some less important classes. Similar hours are also worked in a number 
of factories which meet the essential daily needs of the public, such 
as electric generating stations, water works and gas works, With a 
fortnightly holiday, the hours of workers employed on the 8 hour 
shifts come to 56 and 48 in alternate weeks, giving an average of 52 
hours. Thus in the iron and steel works at Jamshedpur, some workers 
have a 48 hour week and the actual average number of hours, including 
overtime, is reported as about 51 or 52. In some other continuous 
process factories, the average is probably nearer 56. Ag a rule, flour 
mills work continuously throughout the week, but in this industry there 
are generally only two shifts of 12 hours each, the workers, in theory or 
in fact, receiving intervals amounting to 2 hours throughout the shift. 
Minor Industries. 
In the minor industries hours naturally vary greatly. Generally 
speaking, the hours in perennial factories in Bengal are substantially 
shorter than the legal maximum, while in the less industrialised provinces 
and especially in the smaller centres a 60 hour week is frequent. In the 
printing trades a short nominal week is fairly general, but a substantial 
amount of overtime ig common. As a rule the tobacco factories do not 
work for more than 54 hours a week. Those rice mills and oil mills 
which are perennial generally work for the full maximum week. Woollen 
and silk factories also normally work for 60 hours. Where this is the 
case. the week is usualy divided into 6 davs of 10 hours each