CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT ACT, 1936

• (a) such agreement shall be binding on every employer concerned in the form of industrial work in the area to which such agreement relates and on every worker or, where such agreement relates only to a class of workers, every worker in such class employed in the said form of industrial work in the said area;

• (b) it shall not be lawful for any such employer to employ or pay any such worker or for any such worker to accept any employment or payment with or from any such employer at a rate of salary, wages, or other reward which is less than the rate provided by such agreement and applicable to such worker;

• (c) if any such employer employs or pays any such worker in contravention of the next preceding paragraph of this sub-section, such employer shall be guilty of an offence under this section and if any such worker accepts any employment or payment in contravention of the said next preceding paragraph, such worker shall also be guilty of an offence under this section;

• (d) subject to the provisions of the next following paragraph of this sub-section, every such worker shall notwithstanding any contract to the contrary, be entitled to demand from and be paid by and to recover from his employer, salary, wages, or other reward at the rate provided by such agreement and applicable to such worker;

• (e) nothing contained in this sub-section shall operate to prevent any such employer from employing or paying any such worker salary, wages or other reward at a rate greater or more beneficial to such worker than the rate provided by such agreement and applicable to such worker, or operate to prevent any such worker who is so employed at such greater or more, beneficial rate of salary, wages, or other reward from recovering from his employer salary, wages, or other reward at such greater or more beneficial rate.

• (5) Whenever an agreement is presented to the Minister for registration under this section the party or parties so presenting such agreement shall furnish to the Minister a copy thereof to be retained by him and shall furnish to the Minister all such information (if any) as he may require concerning such agreement and if such party or parties fail to furnish such copy and information the Minister may, on the ground of such failure, refuse the registration of such agreement.

• (6) Whenever an agreement is registered in the register, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

• (a) an officer of the Minister authorised in that behalf by the Minister shall cause to be endorsed on such instrument and shall sign thereon a certificate stating that such agreement is so registered and the date on which it was so registered;

• (b) the Minister shall cause notice of the registration of such agreement in the register (with such particulars of such agreement and such registration as the Minister shall think proper) to be published in the Iris Oifigiúil;

• (c) any person may obtain from the Minister, on –applying therefor in the prescribed manner and paying the prescribed fee, a copy of the copy of such agreement retained by the Minister under this section.

• (7) A certificate endorsed and signed on an agreement in pursuance of the next preceding sub-section of this section shall be accepted in every court as conclusive evidence that such agreement is duly registered in the register and was so registered on the date stated in that behalf in such certificate and such certificate shall be so accepted without proof of the signature of the officer purporting to sign such certificate in pursuance of the said sub-section or that he was an officer of the Minister or was authorised by the Minister to sign such certificate.

• (8) Whenever an agreement has been registered in the register, any person may, within one month after the publication in the Iris Oifigiúil of notice of such registration, apply to the High Court in a summary manner for the annulment of such registration, and on the hearing of such application the High Court may, if it is satisfied of either or both of the following matters that is to say:—

• (a) that the employer signatories to such agreement were not, at the date of such agreement, substantially representative of the employers interested in the form of industrial work to which such agreement relates in Saorstát Eireann or, where such agreement applies to part only of Saorstát Eireann, in such part of Saorstát Eireann, or

• (b) that the worker signatories to such agreement were not, at the date of such agreement, substantially representative of the workers or the particular class of workers to which such agreement relates employed in the form of industrial work to which such agreement relates in Saorstát Eireann or, where such agreement applies to part only of Saorstát Eireann, in such part of Saorstát Eireann,

annul the registration of such agreement in the register.

• (9) The time within which an agreement may be presented under this section to the Minister for registration in the register shall be—

• (a) in the case of an agreement bearing date before the date of the commencement of this Act, within six months after such commencement, or

• (b) in the case of an agreement bearing date as of or after the date of the commencement of this Act, within six months after the date of such agreement.

51 Preservation of existing rates of wages.

51.—(1) Where, in order to comply with this Act, the hours of work prevailing immediately before the commencement of this Act in regard to all persons or any particular persons or person employed in any particular form of industrial work are reduced or otherwise altered, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

• (a) the rate of salary, wages, or other reward payable to any such person immediately before the commencement of this Act shall not be reduced or be otherwise altered to the detriment of such person merely because of the said reduction or alteration in the hours of work of such person;

• (b) the said reduction or alteration of hours of work shall not terminate nor prejudicially affect the contract of service under which any such person is so employed immediately before the commencement of this Act, and every such contract shall continue in force after such commencement with such modifications only as may be necessary in order to comply with this Act and in particular the modification that notwithstanding the said reduction or alteration of hours of work the average weekly earnings payable in a normal full working week to such person under such contract shall not be reduced;

• (c) every agreement between employers or a body representative of employers on the one hand and workers or a body representative of workers on the other hand which is in force immediately before the commencement of this Act and regulates or restricts the rate of salary, wages, or other reward payable to any such person shall continue in force after the commencement of this Act notwithstanding the said reduction or alteration of hours of work but with the modification that every rate of salary, wages, or other reward which is fixed or the method of calculating which is fixed by such agreement and every restriction on any rate of salary, wages, or other reward contained in such agreement shall remain unchanged in amount;

• (d) every minimum rate of salary, wage, or other reward fixed by statute or under statutory authority which is in force immediately before the commencement of this Act shall, if and so far as it is applicable to any such person, continue after such commencement in force and unchanged in amount notwithstanding the said reduction or alteration of hours of work.

• (2) The foregoing sub-section of this section shall apply and have effect in relation to every regulation made under this Act by the Minister fixing hours of work in respect of any form of industrial work (whether for all or for any particular classes or class of workers engaged therein) with and subject to the modifications that every reference in the said sub-section to the commencement of this Act shall be construed and have effect as a reference to the coming into operation of such regulation and every reference in the said sub-section to compliance with this Act shall be construed and have effect as a reference to compliance with such regulations.

• (3) This section shall apply to piece work wages and to wages calculated by direct reference to the number of hours worked, but with the modification that for the purposes of such application every provision in this section to the effect that a rate of wages or a minimum rate of wages or a restriction on a rate of wages is to remain unchanged shall be construed and have effect as a provision that the rate of piece work wages or of wages by the hour (as the case may be) shall be so adjusted or varied that the average weekly earnings shall remain unchanged.

52 Limitation of hours of work.

52.—(1) Whenever the Minister makes regulations declaring any form of industrial work to be excluded industrial work for the purpose of any section of this Part of this Act which relates to the hours during which an employer may permit any worker to do for him any form of industrial work, the Minister may by order make regulations fixing in such manner as he may think fit the hours of work in respect of such form of industrial work for all or any classes of workers engaged in such form of industrial work, and so long as such regulations remain in force it shall not be lawful for any employer to permit any worker to whom such regulations relate to do for him such industrial work save during such hours as may be fixed by such order.

• (2) Whenever the Minister fixes by regulations made under this section the hours of work in respect of any form of industrial work (whether for all or for any particular classes or class of workers engaged therein) the Minister may by the same regulations make such provisions as he shall consider to be necessary or proper for securing that the average weekly earnings payable in a normal full working week to any person whose hours of work are reduced by such regulations shall not be reduced merely because of such reduction in his hours of work.

• (3) The Minister shall not make any regulations under this section unless he has first consulted with representatives of employers interested in the form of industrial work to which such regulations relate and with representatives of workers so interested.

• (4) If any employer permits or employs any worker to work for him in contravention of any regulations made under this section and for the time being in force such employer shall be guilty of an offence under this section and such worker shall also be guilty of an offence under this section.

53 Display of abstract and notices.

53.—(1) Every employer who employs any worker to do industrial work on any premises where an industrial undertaking is carried on shall display at the entrance to such premises and in such other places as an inspector shall for the time being direct in such a position that it may be easily read by persons so employed on such premises—

• (a) the prescribed abstract of this Act,

• (b) notice in the prescribed form of the hours of work for workers doing such industrial work,

• (c) a notice stating the days in the current year which are for the time being public holidays for the purposes of this Act in respect of such industrial undertaking, and

• (d) where any industrial work is carried on by continuous process shift work or by licensed shift work, a list of all persons so carrying on such industrial work and particulars as to the shifts on which they are working, and

• (e) a notice of the clock by which the period of employment and times for meals are regulated in such industrial undertaking, and

• (f) notice of every agreement registered in the Wages Agreements Register which affects any workers doing industrial work on such premises.

• (2) Every employer who is by this section required to display any notice, list or abstract shall display such notice, list or abstract in both the Irish and English languages.

• (3) If any employer fails to comply with the requirements of this section he shall be guilty of an offence under this section.

54 Emergency as defence.

54.—(1) It shall be a good defence to any proceedings taken against any person for breach of any of the provisions of this Part of this Act if such person shows to the satisfaction of the Court before which such proceedings are brought that any act occasioning such breach was rendered necessary or reasonably proper by the actual occurrence or the threat or reasonable anticipation of fire, flood, storm, violence, a breakdown of plant or machinery, or any other emergency.

• (2) A certificate signed by any Minister that an act done by or in relation to any person employed by such Minister was rendered necessary by an emergency shall be conclusive evidence that such act was so rendered necessary.

55 Mixed employment.

55.—If any employer employs any worker to do any industrial work for any part of any day and employs such worker to do other work which is not industrial work for any other part of that day such worker shall for the purpose of this Part of this Act be deemed to be employed to do such industrial work while doing such other work.

PART IV. Miscellaneous.

56 Variation of pending contracts.

56.—(1) Where a contract for the execution of any work or the manufacture or production of any article or substance or the doing of any other form of industrial work was entered into before the commencement of this Part of this Act and is at such commencement not fully carried out, and the person liable under such contract to execute such work, manufacture or produce such article or substance or do such other industrial work claims either or both of the following things, that is to say:—

• (a) that, by reason of the obligations imposed on employers by this Act, a limitation of time contained in such contract for the doing of any particular thing has become unreasonable and should be extended, or

• (b) that, by reason of the said obligations, any particular price or other payment fixed by such contract has become unreasonable and should be increased,

then and in every such case, such claim shall, in default of agreement between the parties concerned, be referred, on the demand of any such party, to arbitration under this section.

• (2) Where a claim is referred under this section to arbitration, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

• (a) such arbitration shall be heard and determined by one arbitrator who, in default of agreement between the parties concerned, shall be appointed by the Minister on the application of any such party;

• (b) in the case of a claim for the extension of a limitation of time, the arbitrator shall determine whether such extension should or should not be made and (if he determines that such extension should be made) the amount of such extension;

• (c) in the case of a claim for the increase of a price or other payment, the arbitrator shall determine whether such increase should or should not be made and (if he determines that such increase should be made) the amount of such increase;

• (d) the arbitrator shall be paid such fee for acting as arbitrator as shall, in default of agreement, be fixed by the Minister, and such fee and all other general costs and expenses of the arbitration shall be paid by such one or more of the parties to the arbitration and, if by more than one of such parties, in such proportions as the arbitrator shall direct;

• (e) the arbitrator shall determine how the costs and expenses incurred by each of the parties to the arbitration of or incidental to appearing and being heard thereat shall be borne;

• (f) if the arbitrator determines that a limitation of time should be extended or that a price should be increased, the arbitrator shall amend the contract which is the subject of the arbitration in such manner as he shall think proper in order to give effect to such determination;

• (g) the determination of the arbitrator shall be final and conclusive and shall be binding on all parties concerned.

57 Form of industrial work.

57.—Whenever the Minister makes regulations or grants a licence or permit under this Act in respect of a particular form of industrial work, the Minister may, in such regulations, licence, or permit (as the case may be)—

• (a) specify such industrial work either generally or when done in any particular place or class of places or by any particular workers or class of workers;

• (b) specify any form of industrial work by reference to the nature of such industrial work, to the workers or class of workers by whom such industrial work is done, or in such other manner as he may think fit:

• (c) when different forms of industrial work are done in any industrial undertaking or class of industrial undertakings refer to by any collective description and specify as one form of industrial work such forms or any of such forms of individual work done in such industrial undertaking or class of industrial undertakings;

• (d) in specifying any form of industrial work make such exceptions and exclusions as he may think fit.

58 Separation of parts of industrial undertakings.

58.—(1) The Minister may by order, if and whenever he so thinks fit on the application of an employer carrying on an industrial undertaking, declare that any one or more of the departments, branches, or other parts of such undertaking shall, for all the purposes or any specified purposes of this Act, be deemed to be separate industrial undertakings, and that this Act shall apply and have effect in relation to such undertaking accordingly.

• (2) The Minister may by order, whenever he so thinks fit, revoke or amend an order previously made by him under this section, including an order made under this sub-section.

• (3) Whenever and so long as an order made under this section is in force in respect of an industrial undertaking, this Act shall apply and have effect in relation to such undertaking subject to and in accordance with such order.

59 Expenses.

59.—Any expenses incurred in carrying this Act into execution shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

60 Power of inspectors.

60.—An inspector shall for the purpose of the execution of this Act have power to do all or any of the things which an inspector has power to do for the purpose of the execution of the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901, as if references to that Act in section 119 thereof were references to this Act, and for the purpose of the exercise of such powers every place in which any industrial work is carried on shall be deemed to be a factory within the meaning of that Act.

61 Employment of persons not in receipt of wages or salary.

61.—Where industrial work in any industrial undertaking is done wholly or partly by persons who do not receive any salary or wages in respect of their work, the person carrying on such industrial undertaking shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be the employer of such persons doing such industrial work, and such persons shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be workers in the employment of such person.

62 Industrial work in institutions.

62.—(1) The provisions of this Act, except in so far as they relate to the payment of workers, shall apply in relation to industrial work done in any institution as if the persons doing such industrial work were workers employed to do such industrial work by the persons having control of such institution unless such industrial work is done for the purpose only of supplying the needs and requirements of such institution.

• (2) For the purpose of this section the word “institution” means an institution carried on for charitable or reformatory purposes, other than a prison, a borstal institute, a mental home, or a county home.

63 Statistical returns.

63.—(1) The Minister may by order make regulations for all or any of the following purposes, that is to say:—

• (a) requiring persons carrying on industrial undertakings to make and furnish to the Minister statistical returns;

• (b) prescribing the class or classes of industrial undertakings in respect of which such returns are to be made;

• (c) prescribing the subjects and matters in respect of which such returns are to be made;

• (d) prescribing the forms in which and the times at which such returns are to be made.

• (2) Every person, required by regulations made under this section to make statistical returns, who fails to make such returns in accordance with such regulations shall be guilty of an offence under this section.

64 Records.

64.—(1) The Minister may by order make regulations prescribing records, to be kept by employers or any class of employers, of any matter or thing a record of which is in the opinion of the Minister required for the enforcement of this Act and may by any such order, if he so thinks fit, prescribe the form of any such records.

• (2) The Minister may under this section make different regulations in respect of different classes of employers.

• (3) The Minister may, if he so thinks fit, by any regulations made under this section prescribe the place or places where the records prescribed by such regulations shall be kept and may make such regulations as to the production and inspection of such records as he may think fit.

• (4) Any person who fails to comply with any regulation made under this section and for the time being in force, and applicable to such person, shall be guilty of an offence under this Act.

SCHEDULE. ENACTMENTS REPEALED.