S.I. NO. 258 OF 2001

EMPLOYMENT REGULATION ORDER (WOMEN'S CLOTHING AND MILLINERY JOINT LABOUR COMMITTEE), 2001

WHEREAS the Labour Court (hereinafter called “the Court”) pursuant to the provisions of Section 48 of the Industrial Relations Act, 1990 (hereinafter called “the Act”) made an Employment Regulation Order dated 7^th September, 2000 ( S.I. No. 274 of 2000 ) (hereinafter called “the said Order”) fixing the statutory minimum rates of remuneration and regulating the statutory conditions of employment of workers in relation to whom the Women's Clothing and Millinery Joint Labour Committee (hereinafter called “the Committee”) operates, other than workers employed in the making of women's headgear in the Factory Branch of the Trade in the Borough of Galway;

AND WHEREAS the Committee has submitted to the Court a proposal for revoking the said Order;

AND WHEREAS the Committee has also submitted to the Court the proposals set out in the Schedule hereto for fixing the statutory minimum rates of remuneration and regulating the statutory conditions of employment of workers in relation to whom the Committee operates, other than workers employed in the making of women's headgear in the Factory Branch of the Trade in the Borough of Galway;

AND WHEREAS the provisions of Section 48 of the Act have been complied with;

NOW, THEREFORE, the Court, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by Section 48 of the Act and Section 43(4) of the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 hereby Orders as follows:-

(1)      This Order may be cited as the Employment Regulation Order (Women's Clothing and Millinery Joint Labour Committee), 2001.

(2)      Effect is hereby given to the proposals set out in the Schedule hereto.

(3)      The provisions set out in the Schedule hereto shall have effect as from 26^th June, 2001 and as from that date the said Order shall be revoked.

SCHEDULE

PART I

SECTION I

General Minimum Time-Rates and Incentive Time-Rates for Workers

The minimum rate payable on the Incentive Time-Rate for Job Class 5 is £198.49 (€252.03) per week. However, incentive earnings may be calculated on the basis of £186.25 (€236.49) per week.

SECTION II

LEARNERS

Notes

This ERO takes account of the National Minimum Wage Act, 2000 and the reckonable components listed in Part 1 of the Schedule thereto, as well as the Second Phase of the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness (i.e. an increase of 5.5% with a minimum of £11 per week) and the additional 2% in accordance with the agreement negotiated at national level in December, 2000. Employers may, in certain circumstances, seek concessions in order to meet the costs of the additional increases.

The Euro (€) comes into effect on 1-1-2002.

PART II

SECTION I - NORMAL WORKING HOURS

(a)      The normal number of hours to be worked by workers in relation to whom the Committee operates shall be 39 hours per week. In relation to workers under the age of 18, the provisions of the Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act, 1996 shall apply.

(b)      The working week shall be one of 5 days, the off-day to be taken on the normal local short day unless otherwise mutually agreed between the employer and worker.

PROVIDED THAT:

(i)      All hours worked by a worker on the weekly off-day, on Sunday and on customary public or statutory holidays, shall be regarded as overtime to which the overtime rates shall apply.

(ii)      In any week in which one or more customary public or statutory holidays occur, the normal number of hours shall be less, in respect of each such holiday, the number of hours which would have been worked on such holiday if it had been a normal working day.

SECTION II - OVERTIME RATES

The minimum rates for overtime to apply in respect of time worked by a worker (whether employed on time-work or on piece-work) in excess of the declared normal number of hours of work shall be as follows:-

1.      On any day other than Sundays and Public Holidays:

(i)      For the first four hours of overtime, one and a half times the minimum rate otherwise applicable i.e. time-and-a-half.

(ii)      For overtime after the first four hours of overtime, twice the minimum rate otherwise applicable i.e. double time.

2.      On Sundays and customary or statutory public holidays: twice the minimum rate otherwise applicable i.e. double time.

PART III

ANNUAL LEAVE

All employees are entitled to paid annual leave in accordance with the provisions of the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997 .

PART IV

WORKERS TO WHOM THIS ORDER APPLIES

The minimum remuneration and conditions of employment set out in this Order shall apply, subject to the provisions of the Industrial Relations Acts, 1946 - 1990 and of this Order, to all workers in respect of any time during which they are employed in any branch of the trade specified in the Trade Boards (Women's Clothing and Millinery) Order, 1926 and the Trade Boards (Women's Clothing and Millinery) (Variation) Order, 1944, that is to say:-

The making from textile or knitted fabrics of (a) tailored and non-tailored wearing apparel (other than handkerchiefs) worn by women or girls or by children without distinction of sex; or (b) boys' ready made washing suits or sailor suits, where carried out in association with, or in conjunction with, the making of garments to be worn by women or girls, or by children without distinction of sex; and the making from any material of women's or female children's headgear, or the trimming thereof.

including:-

(1)     All operations and processes of cutting, making or finishing by hand or machine of coats, costumes, coatfrocks, mantles, service clothing, dresses, skirts, wraps, blouses, blouse robes, jumpers, sports-coats, neckwear, tea-gowns, dressing-gowns, dressing-jackets, pyjamas, underclothing, underskirts, aprons, overalls, juvenile clothing, baby-linen or similar articles.

(2)     (a)      The altering of any of the above-mentioned garments where carried out in association with, or in conjunction with, the altering, repairing, renovating or re-making of such garments.

(b)     The cleaning of any of the above-mentioned garments where carried out in association with, or in conjunction with, the altering, repairing, renovating or re-making of such garments.

(3)     All processes of embroidery or decorative needlework where carried out in association with, or in conjunction with, the making, altering, repairing, renovating or re-making of such articles other than hand embroidery or hand drawn-thread work on articles made of linen or cotton or of mixed linen and cotton.

(4)     The lining with fur of any of the above-mentioned garments where carried out in association with, or in conjunction with, the making of such garments.

(5)     The following processes, if done by machine; thread-drawing, thread-clipping, top-sewing, scalloping, nickelling and paring.

(6)     Laundering, smoothing, folding, ornamenting, boxing, packing, warehousing or other operations incidental or appertaining to the making, altering, repairing, renovating or re-making of any of the above-mentioned articles.

But excluding:-

(a)     The making of knitted articles, knitted headgear, the making of headgear from knitted fabrics; the making of underclothing, socks, and stockings from knitted fabrics and the making from knitted fabrics of articles mentioned in paragraph 1, where carried on in association with, or in conjunction with, the manufacture of the knitted fabrics.

(b)     The making of gloves, spats, gaiters, boots, shoes and slippers.

(c)     The making from rubberised or oilskin material or material commonly called plastic of men's or women's, boys' or girls' outer garments excluding aprons; and the making from rubberised or oilskin material or material commonly called plastic of women's or girls' headgear where carried out in association with, or in conjunction with, the making of other rubberised oilskin or plastic articles.

(d)     The making of women's collars and cuffs and of nurses' stiff washing belts where carried on in association with, or in conjunction with, the making of men's or boys' shirts or collars.

(e)     Warehousing, packing and other similar operations carried on in shops mainly engaged in the retail distribution of articles of any description that are not made on the premises.

(f)     The casting and making of solid metal helmets.

(g)     The lining with fur of any of the articles mentioned in paragraph 1 above, and the making of fur hats, where carried on in association with, or in conjunction with, the manufacture of furs or furriers' skins into garments, rugs or similar articles.

(h)     The branches of the trade covered by the Trade Board (Corset) Order, 1919.

(i)      The making of hoods which:-

(i)      are for women's or female children's headgear

and

(ii)      are from materials which, at any stage of the making of the hoods, are felted in the premises in which the hoods are made.

PART V

DEFINITIONS

SECTION I

The term “homeworker” shall be deemed to mean a worker who works in her own home or any other place not under the control or management of her employer.

SECTION II

A Learner is a worker who:-

(a)      is employed during the whole or a substantial part of the hours of work in learning any branch or process of the trade by an employer who provides the learner with reasonable facilities for such learning; and

(b)      has received a learner's certificate or has been registered in accordance with the rules from time to time laid down by the Joint Labour Committee or has made an application for such certificate of registration which has been duly acknowledged and is still under consideration.

Any worker who has previously been employed in any branch of the Trade as defined in this Schedule and has not been registered as a learner, nor has held a learner's certificate and who is subsequently employed as a learner shall count the whole period of such previous employment for the purpose of determining the time-rate at which such worker is entitled to be paid.

A learner shall cease to be a learner and shall become entitled to the minimum rates payable to workers other than learners on the completion of the period of learnership specified in Part 1, Section II.

PROVIDED THAT -

(i)      The learner's certificate shall become invalid if the other conditions of learnership are not complied with.

(ii)      An employer may employ a learner on first employment in the trade (as described in this Part of the Schedule) without a certificate for a probationary period not exceeding one month but, in the event of such learner being continued thereafter in such employment, the probationary period shall be included in the period of learnership.

(iii)      An application for a learner's certificate must be made to the Committee in respect of every worker whom it is desired to employ at the special lower rates fixed for learners.

(iv)     Where the employment of a learner with a particular employer is interrupted by reason of illness, the temporary cessation of the work on which the learner is employed, the temporary reduction of the weekly quantity of such work or any other temporary cause not due to the learner's act or default, the learner shall be deemed to have been in the continuous employment of such employer for the purpose of determining the appropriate rate applicable to the learner provided that such interruption does not exceed thirty days (counting Sundays and other non-working days) and provided that the learner returns to employment with that particular employer at the end of such interruption.

(v)      For the purpose of determining the minimum rate applicable, there shall be included in the calculation of the period of employment of a learner one-half of the period of such learner's attendance at a wholetime course of instruction in the Trade at a technical school or (which may include a reasonable amount of general education) such instruction being given by a teacher whose qualification has been approved by the Department of Education and being of a minimum duration of two years.

PART VI

WAITING TIME

A worker must be paid not less than the appropriate minimum piece-work basis time-rate in respect of all time during which the worker is on the employer's premises unless the employer can prove that such worker was so present (a) without the employer's consent expressed or implied or (b) for some purpose unconnected with work and other than waiting for work to be given to perform or unless (c) only, by reason of the fact that the worker was resident on the premises or (d) during normal meal hours in a room or place in which no work is being done. A worker on piece-work is deemed during “waiting-time” to have been employed at the general minimum piece-work basis time-rate applicable.

PART VII

SERVICE PAY

Workers engaged in any capacity designated in Section I of Part I of this Schedule who have completed not less than 5 years' continuous employment with one employer shall be entitled to service pay as follows:-

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.

This instrument fixes statutory minimum rates of pay and regulates conditions of employment as from 26^th June, 2001 for workers employed in the Women's Clothing and Millinery Trade. It is made by the Labour Court on the recommendation of the Women's Clothing and Millinery Joint Labour Committee.

NOTE:-     Enquiries should be directed to the Secretary, Joint Labour Committees, The Labour Court, Tom Johnson House, Haddington Road, Dublin 4. (Telephone: 01-6136666, Extension Nos. 6639, 6640, 6641 and 6642. “Lo-Call” number (if calling from outside (01) area) 1890 220 228). Website: www.labourcourt.ie

Published by the Stationery Office, Dublin