THE INCOME OF THE INDUSTRIAL WORKER. 221 
other cases deductions should only be permissible after the general or 
special approval of the provincial Government or some authority (e.g., 
the Chief Inspector of Factories) appointed by them. Approval may be 
given, for instance, to schemes for subscriptions to provident funds, 
contributions for medical facilities and for recoveries on account of co- 
operative stores and other activities which are in the interests of the 
workers. 
Enforcement. 
The enforcement of the legislation recommended will not be 
easy, for in a number of cases operatives will be willing to pay a 
heavy fine rather than be dismissed. But a start should be made by 
applying the law only to factories coming under the Factories Act and to 
railways. Here, too, the law might be applicable only to employees 
in receipt of less than Rs. 100 a month. Employers should be required to 
maintain registers of all deductions from wages, showing separately fines, 
deductions for damage to material and other deductions. The parti- 
culars to be entered in the registers and the form in which they are to be 
kept should be prescribed by provincial Governments. In the case of 
factories, the inspection staff would be responsible for seeing that the 
law was observed, and the annual reports of the Chief Inspector of Fac- 
tories should contain a review of the position in regard to fines and other 
deductions. As regards railways, we consider that the registers should 
be scrutinised at intervals by the audit officer, but we feel con- 
fident that the vigilance of those directing the administration and of 
the trade unions will ordinarily be sufficient to secure compliance. 
Proceedings for Contravention. ’ 
The imposition of a deduction not permissible by law should 
be punishable. But we recommend that the usual form of proceeding 
should not be a prosecution, but an application before specially empower- 
ed magistrates and other officers for the recovery of the wrongful pay- 
ment and for compensation. Commissioners for Workmen’s Compensa- 
tion would be officers suitable for this purpose, but the procedure should 
be summary and not based on that of the civil courts. The autho- 
rity to whom application was made would be able, after hearing the other 
party, to direct a refund of the fine or deduction together with compensa- 
tion to the applicant. This should amount to not more than ten times 
the sum wrongfully deducted and these sums should be collected by the 
court along with any costs payable. It should be possible for applica- 
tion to be made by an inspector, by the workman aggrieved or by any 
person acting on his behalf. This last provision would enable trade 
unions to take up these cases as they now take up cases for workmen’s 
Compensation. A prosecution should be instituted only with the 
Sanction of an inspector or an, officer before whom a proceeding for con- 
travention had been taken, and we contemplate that ordinarily such ac- 
tion would be necessary only in serious cases, e.g., offences committed after 
Previous contraventions or gross and deliberate exactions.