Report of the Royal Commission on Labour in India

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1850495947

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-233603

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: Report of the Royal Commission on Labour in India

Place of publication:: London

Publisher:: His Majesty's Stationery Off.

Year of publication:: 1931

Scope:: xviii, 580 S.; graph. Darst., Kt.

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Chapter

Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Chapter XI. - Transport services and public works

Collection:: Economics Books

188 CHAPTER X1, of dock work, we consider that the normal hours of work in Karachi, Madras and Rangoon are unduly long. In the matter of overtime also there is need for protection. In Bombay we were informed that, if a ship is working continuously day and night, a gang is ordinarily required to work three consecutive shifts—a day, a night and a day, s.e., 25 hours excluding breaks. Payment is made at the same rate for all three shifts, Such excessive hours are both unnecessary and unreasonable, though it was stated that the men rest in turns while work is going on. The work of loading and unloading ships is more arduous than most forms of factory work and there is, in consequence, at least as much need for control in the one case as in the other. The maximum daily limit of 10 hours, which we have suggested for factories, is not suitable for docks, as, without a weekly holiday or a limit of weekly hours, this might involve boo heavy a strain on the worker, particularly as overtime is necessary In certain cases where the employment of a different shift would not be practicable. We recommend that for docks the normal daily hours prescribed by law should be fixed at 9, but overtime should be allowed up to a maximum of 3 additional hours of work on any one day. In order to prevent an abuse of overtime, we recommend that payment for each hour of overtime work should be required at not less than 33% % over the ordinary rates. Tt may be necessary for local Govern- ments to provide exemptions to meet exceptional circumstances, Ag in the case of the safety regulations, the enforcement of the measures relating to hours of work should be entrusted to the factory inspection department of the province. As the docks are situated in industrial centres, we do not think that this new field of inspection should involve any great increase of staff, particularly if, as we anticipate, the co-operation of the port authorities is obtained. Sir Alexander Murray considers that, in view of the irregular nature of the employment, it would not be unreasonable to initiate legal restrictions on the hours of work of dock labour in this country by fixing the normal daily hours at ten and allowing overtime up to two hours on any one day payable at not less than one and a quarter times the regular rato Employment of Children. As a result of the consideration given to the Washington Con- vention fixing the minimum age for admission of children to industrial employment, the Indian Legislature passed an Act in 1922 making it obligatory on the local Government to frame rules under the Indian Porte Act of 1908 prohibiting the employment of children under the age of 1% years “upon the handling of goods at piers, jetties, landing places, wharves, quays, docks, warehouses and sheds.” Although such rules have been duly promulgated in the only port in which we found children employed, some children below the prescribed age were employed in the coaling of ships. We were uncertain if such employment was_an in- fringement of the law, in view of the fact that the coaling was done on the waterside of the ship and not at a pier, jetty, etc., mentioned in the Indian Ports (Amendment) Act of 1922. Since our visit, an amendine Act

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