PART VII.

Transitory Provisions in Relation to Wages (Standard Rate) Orders and Bonus Orders under Emergency Powers (No. 166) Order, 1942, and Emergency Powers (No. 260) Order, 1943.

73. —In this Part—

the expression “bonus order” means an order made under Article 11 or Article 11A or Article 11AA of Order 166 or under Article 11 of the Emergency Powers (No. 166) Order, 1942 (Fifth Amendment) Order, 1942 (S. R. & O., No. 444 of 1942) or under Article 18 or Article 19 or Article 20 or paragraph (4) of Article 21 of Order 260, which is in force immediately before the commencement of this Act;

the expression “Order 166” means the Emergency Powers (No. 166) Order, 1942 (S. R. & O., No. 121 of 1942);

the expression “Order 260” means the Emergency Powers (No. 260) Order, 1943 (S. R. & O., No. 50 of 1943);

the word “recorded” means, in relation to a wages (standard rate) order or a bonus order, recorded under section 76 of this Act;

the expression “wages (standard rate) order” means an order made under Article 10 or Article 10A of Order 166 or under Article 16 or Article 17 or paragraph (3) of Article 21 of Order 260 which is in force immediately before the commencement of this Act.

74. —(1) This Part shall continue in force for one year from the commencement of this Act and shall then expire unless further continued by regulations of the Minister under subsection (2) of this section.

(2) The Minister, after consultation with organisations representative of trade unions of workers and trade unions representative of employers, may, if he thinks fit, by regulations, made before the expiration of one year from the commencement of this Act, continue this Part for such further period as he thinks fit and specifies in the order, and in that case this Part shall continue in force until the end of the period so specified and shall then expire.

75. —This Part does not apply to workers whose remuneration is fixed by a Minister of State under any enactment for the time being in force.

76. —(1) Where an application is made to the Court by a trade union or any body of persons, which appears to the Court to be representative of workers to whom a wages (standard rate) order and a bonus order apply, to record such orders under this section, the Court shall, subject to subsection (2) of this section, cause the said orders to be recorded.

(2) The Court shall not cause a wages (standard rate) order or a bonus order to be recorded under this section unless the application to record the order is made within the period of four months beginning on the commencement of this Act.

(3) An application under this section to record a wages (standard rate) order and a bonus order may be made by registered post and shall be accompanied by copies of the orders.

(4) The Court may appoint one of its officers to receive applications under this section and record wages (standard rate) orders and bonus orders.

77. —(1) An application may be made to the Court by a trade union or other body for an order fixing rates of remuneration for a class of workers to whom, immediately before the commencement of this Act, no wages (standard rate) order applied.

(2) Where an application is made to the Court under this section in respect of a class of workers, the following provisions shall have effect—

(a) if the applicant appears to the Court to be representative of workers of that class, the Court shall publish notice of the application in such manner as, in the opinion of the Court, is best calculated to bring the application to the notice of all persons concerned;

(b) the Court shall consider the application and shall hear all persons appearing to the Court to be concerned and desiring to be heard;

(c) the Court may, as it thinks fit, refuse the application or make an order providing for such rates of remuneration for the said class of workers as the Court thinks fit;

(d) where the Court makes such order—

(i) if the applicant notifies the Court, within sixteen days after the making of the order, that the order is not acceptable, the Court shall thereupon revoke the order,

(ii) if the applicant does not so notify the Court the order shall, as on and from the expiration of the said sixteen days, have the like effect as if it were a recorded wages (standard rate) order and bonus order, and

(iii) references in the subsequent sections of this Part to wages (standard rate) orders and bonus orders shall be construed as including references to orders under this section, with the modifications that references to recording shall, in relation to an order under this section, have effect as references to the making of the order, and references to cancellation of a recording shall have effect as references to the revocation of the order.

78. —(1) Where a wages (standard rate) order and a bonus order are recorded, the following provisions shall, during the period during which the said orders continue to be recorded, have effect, that is to say:—

(a) the employer of any worker to whom the said orders relate shall pay to such worker remuneration at a rate not less than the appropriate rate specified in the wages (standard rate) order, together with the bonus specified in the bonus order;

(b) if a contract between any worker to whom the said orders relate and his employer provides for payment of remuneration at a rate (in this paragraph referred to as the contract rate) less than the rate specified in the wages (standard rate) order, together with the bonus specified in the bonus order, the contract shall, in respect of the said period have effect as if it provided for payment of remuneration at the rate specified in the wages (standard rate) order together with the said bonus in lieu of the contract rate;

(c) if a trade union of workers complains to the Court that an employer has, in respect of any worker to whom the said orders relate, failed or neglected to comply with paragraph (a) of this subsection—

(i) the Court shall consider the complaint, and shall hear all persons appearing to the court to be interested and desiring to be heard,

(ii) if, after such consideration, the Court is satisfied that the complaint is well-founded, the Court may by order direct the said employer to pay any sum due to the worker for remuneration in accordance with the orders;

(d) if an employer to whom the said orders relate or a trade union representative of such employers complains to the Court that a trade union of workers is promoting or assisting out of its funds in the maintenance of a strike which to the knowledge of the general committee of management of the trade union of workers has for its object the enforcement of a demand on an employer to pay to a worker to whom the orders relate remuneration other than that provided by the orders, the following provisions shall have effect:—

(i) the Court shall consider the complaint and shall hear all persons appearing to the Court to be interested and desiring to be heard;

(ii) if, after such consideration, the Court is satisfied that the complaint is well-founded—

(I) the Court may, by order, direct the said trade union of workers to refrain from assisting out of its funds in the maintenance of the said strike;

(II) the Court may cancel the recording of the orders.

(2) Where—

(a) a strike continues after the Court has made an order under subsection (1) of this section in respect of the strike, and

(b) members of a trade union of workers, whose rates of remuneration are not the subject of the strike, are unable or decline to work while the strike continues,

then, the payment to those members of strike benefit in accordance with the rules of the trade union shall not be regarded, for the purposes of this section, as assisting in the maintenance of the strike.

(3) If, where an order is made by the Court under subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section or under clause (I) of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (d) of subsection (1) of this section, the direction contained in the order is not carried out, the person to whom the direction is given shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds and, in the case of a continuing offence, a further fine not exceeding ten pounds for every day during which the offence is continued.

79. —Where a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order have been recorded, the following provisions shall have effect—

(a) application may be made from time to time by trade unions and other bodies for an increase in the rates of remuneration specified in the orders;

(b) if any such applicant appears to the Court to be representative of workers to whom the orders relate, the Court shall publish notice of the application in such manner as, in the opinion of the Court, is best calculated to bring the application to the notice of all persons concerned;

(c) the Court shall consider the application and shall hear all persons appearing to the Court to be concerned and desiring to be heard;

(d) the Court may, as it thinks fit, refuse the application or make an order providing for such increased rates of remuneration as it thinks fit;

(e) if the Court makes such order, it shall specify in the order the trade unions of workers or bodies represensentative of workers (in this section referred to as interested parties) who shall be entitled to require the revocation of the order or the cancellation of the recording of the wages (standard rate) order and the bonus order in accordance with this section;

(f) if any interested party, within sixteen days after the making of the order, notifies the Court either—

(i) that it requires the order to be revoked, or

(ii) that it requires the order to be revoked and the recording to be cancelled,

the Court shall comply with the requirement;

(g) if an interested party does not so notify the Court, the wages (standard rate) order and the bonus order shall, as on and from the expiration of the said sixteen days, have, for the purposes of section 78 of this Act, effect as if they were amended in accordance with the terms of the order so made by the Court;

(h) if the Court refuses the application it shall specify the trade unions or bodies who shall be entitled to reject the refusal, and, if within sixteen days after the refusal, any such trade union or body notifies the Court that it rejects the refusal, the Court shall thereupon cancel the recording of the wages (standard rate) order and the bonus order.

80. —(1) Where an employment agreement, within the meaning of Part III of this Act, relating to remuneration is registered under the said Part III, the Court shall thereupon cancel the recording of any wages (standard rate) order and bonus order which in the opinion of the Court relate to the same class of workers as that to which the said agreement applies.

(2) The Court, if satisfied, on the complaint of any person, that the recording of a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order was obtained on the application of a trade union or body which did not represent the majority of the workers to whom the said orders relate, may cancel the recording.

81. —(1) When a wages (standard rate) order and a bonus order are recorded the Court shall publish in such manner as it thinks fit notice of the recording together with such particulars of the orders as the Court considers necessary.

(2) When a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order are varied by order under section 79 of this Act the Court shall publish in such manner as it thinks fit notice of the variation together with such particulars of the variation as the Court considers necessary.

(3) When the recording of a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order is cancelled the Court shall publish in such manner as it thinks fit notice of the cancellation.

82. —(1) The Court may at any time, on the application of any person, give its decision on any question as to the interpretation of a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order or their application to a particular person.

(2) A court of law, in determining any question arising in proceedings before it as to the interpretation of a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order or their application to a particular person shall have regard to any decision of the Court on the said orders referred to it in the course of the proceedings.

(3) If any question arises in proceedings before a court of law as to the interpretation of a wages (standard rate) order and bonus order or their application to a particular person, the court of law may, if it thinks proper, refer the question to the Court for its decision, and the decision of the Court thereon shall be final.