Shearers and Sugar Workers Accommodation Act of 1905 (5 Edw VII No. 9) (Qld)

MASTERS AND SERVANTS. 8955 5 EDW. VII. No. 9, 1905. Shearers g' SU.fJar Worker~ Accommodation Act. sum which the worker would probably have been earning at the date of the review if he had remained uninjured, but not in any case exceeding one pound. 12. Where any weekly payment has been continued for not less Payment of than three months, the liability therefor may, on the application by or on lump sum. behalf of the employer, be redeemed by the payment of a lump sum to be agreed on by the parties, or, in default of agreement, to be determined by a police magistrate under this Act; and such lump sum may be ordered by the police magistrate to be invested or otherwise applied for the benefit of the person entitled thereto. 13. If a worker receiving weekly payment ceases to reside in the Worker Commonwealth he shall thereupon cease to be entitled to receive any cea. sin~ to weekly payment, but if he proves that the incapacity resulting from the ~ sIde ID injury is of a permanent nature he shall be entitled to a lump sum not w~~ : on- . exceeding one hundred and fifty-six times the amount of weekly payment • less all payments theretofore paid. Any question arising under this paragraph shall, in default of agreement, be determined by a police magistrate. 14. No money paid or payable in respect of compensation under this Compensation Act shall be capable of being assigned, charged, taken in execution, or no~ attached, nor shall the same pass to any other person by operation of assIgnable. law, nor shall any claim be set off against the same. 15. When payment of any moneys und~ r this Act is made to any Payments to person under twenty-one years of age, whether such person claims as a minors. worker, dependant, or legal personal representative, the receipt of such person therefor slmll be a good and valid discharge in law; and such person (notwithstanding minority) may, with the approval of a police magistrate, elect to claim compensation under this Act, and may agree upon the amount of compensation payable. An Act to Provide for the Proper and Sufficient 5 Edw. VII. Accommodation of Shearers and Sugar N; ~ : . Workers. A~ ~ ES~ ~ ~ ~ [ASSENTED TO 9TH NOVEMBER, 1905.J . A: ~ ! ~ ~ ~ A- B E it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, .AOT T~ ~N1905. . by and with the advice and consent of the Legis- lative Council and Legislative Assembly of Queensland in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows :- 1. This Act may be cited as "The Shearers and Short title Sugar Workers A.ccommodation A.ct of 1905," and shall ~ ~ ! mence­ commence and take effect on and from the first day of ment of .Act. January, one thousand nine hundred and six. 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise indicates, I?terpreta- the following terms have the meanings set against them tlOn. respectively, that is to say- " District "-A district constituted for the purposes District. of this Act; I

8956 MASTERS AND SERVANTS. Shearers and Sugar Workers Accommodation Act. 5 Enw. VII. No. 9, Employer. Inspector. Minister. Shearer. Shearing- shed. Sugar worker. Sugar works. "Employer"-Any master, manager, foreman, overseer, or other person having control of a shearing-shed, .sugar plantation, or sugar works, or engaged in superintending any shearer or sugar worker at such shed, planta- tion, or works; "Inspector"-An inspector appointed under this Act; " Minister"-The Home Secretary or other Minister of the Crown charged for the time being with the administration of this Act; " Shearer"-A shearer or labourer employed in or about a shearing-shed; " Shearing-shed "-Any building or structure used for the purpose of shearing sheep, or for the scouring, sorting, or pressing of wool, or in any operation connected with such shearing, scouring, sorting, or pressing; ~ , Sugar worker "-A labourer or artisan employed .in or about any sugar plantation or sugar works other than a Pacific Island labourer to whom the provisions of " The Pacific Island Labourers Acts, 1880-1892,"* extend; "Sugar works"-Any sugar mill or sugar refinery. Application .f Act. 3. This Act shall only apply to shearing-sheds, sugar plantations, and sugar works which are situated within the limits of a district, and in or in connection with which not less than nine shearers or sugar workers are engaged; but it shall not apply to temporary buildings or structures reasonably suitable and used in connection with shearing travelling sheep or sheep which, from some unavoidable cause, cannot be shorn at the usual shearing place on the run or holding. o C f o d n i s s t t i r t i u c t t i s o . n by no 4 ti . fiTcahteionGoivnetrhneor G in az C et o t u e, ncciol nmsatiyt·uftreomdisttirmicetstofotrimthee, purposes of this Act, and may vary or rescind any such notification and alt~ r the boundaries of any district. Alr0intment 5. The Governor in Council may from time to time o Inspectors. appoint such and so many inspectors (who may be members of the Police Force or inspectors under" The Factories and Shops Act of 1900" t) as may be necessary for the • 44 Vie. No. 17, IlUpra, page 1689; 47 Vie. No. 12, 8upra, page 1703; 49 Vio. No.17, supra, page 1705; 50 Vic. No. 6, 8upra, page 1707; and 55 Vie. No. 38, BUpra, page 4675. t 64 Vie. No. 28, IlUpra, page 7216.

MASTERS AND SERVANTS. 1905. Shearers and Suqar Workers Accommodation Act. effectual execution of this Act, and may assign a district or districts to any inspector. Each inspector shall be furnished by the Minister with a certificate of his appointment to be produced by :him in pursuance of this Act. 6. (1.) Accommodation, proper and sufficient for the ~ ccommoda. comfort and health of such shearers or sugar workers as ~ ; :vJ~e~ ~ are employed and reside on the premises of the employer during their empluyment, shall be provided by the employer in buildings separate from the shearing-shed or sugar works; Provided that any agreement between an employer and a shearer or sugar worker, which, if it were valid, would have the effect of requiring t.hat such shearer or sugar worker shall not during his employment in that eapacity reside at or on the shearing-shed or sugar works on which he is employed, shall to that extent be void and inoperative. (2.) Accommodation in such buildings shall not be What is deemed proper or sufficient for the comfort and health ; ~ ~ 1~ : tnd of shearers or sugar workers if any of the following con- fl:ccommoda- ditions are not fulfilled ;_ tlOll. (a) All such buildings shall be separate from the shearing-shed or sugar works, and shall be distant at least fifty yards from the shearing- shed or sugar works: Provided that buildings erected prior to the commencement of this Act at a distance of less than fifty yards, but containing, or which shall be altered so as to contain, the accommo- dation hereinafter defined, and which are recommended by the inspector and approved by the Minister, shall be deemed proper and suffi- dent buildings within the meaning of this Act; Provided further that in any case where the buildings erected for the accommodation of shearers or sugar workers have been ren- dered unfit for habitation by reaeon of destruc- tion or damage by fire or other unforeseen cause, or by reason of any outbreak of disease or any similar cause, and there has not been a reasonable or sufficient time to rebuild or repair the same, or to remove the danger of continuance of such disease, or where a sheep station has been newly established and there has not been a reasonable or sufficient time to

8958 MASTERS AND SERVANTS. Shearers and Sugar Workers Accommodation Act. 5 Enw. VII. No. 9, erect new buildings, the employer may provide temporary accommodation for such shearers or sugar workers in tents or other structures of a. temporary nature; (b) All buildings used for sleeping shall be divided into compartments, each compartment to accommodate not more than four persons; (0) Where the shearers or sugar workers for whom sleeping accommodation is provided include persons of any Asiatic race, a separate building or separate buildings shall be provided for their sleAping accommodation; (d) Not less than two hundred and forty cubic feet of air space shall be allowed to each person sleeping in any such building; (e) No room used for sleeping shall be used for the . cooking or serving of meals; (/) When meals are cooked and served in tIle same room, provision shall be made for cooking the meals at one end of the room and for serving them at the other; (u) Separate dining accommodation shall be pro- vided for all Asiatics employed; (k) The sleeping and dining accommodation re- quired to be provided for sugar workers shall be in a building or buildings separate from those provided for any Pacific Island labourers employed in or about the same sugar plantatioJl or sugar works; (i) Sufficient and proper privy accommodation shall be provided, which shall be situated in a position to be approved by the inspector, and being-in the case of shearing-sheds, not less than twenty-five ya.rds from the biUildings and not less than one hundred yards from the water supply; and in the case of sugar works, not less than twenty-five yards from the water supply; and where there are privies with cesspits, not less than one hundred yards from the same; (j) In the case of sugar works, any dining or sleeping room shall be placed at such distance not less than fifty yards, as the inspector permits, from any open drain for the convey- ance of sewage or liquid refuse, and such drain shall have such fall as the inspector approves;

MAS~ [ , ERS AND SERVANTS. 8959 1905. Shearers and SU.'1ar Workers Accommodation Avt. (k) Every employer shall provide for his shearers or sugar workers a sufficient supply of good drinking water; (l) Each sleeping and dining room shall be supplied with sufficient light and ventilation, and shall be fumigated or disinfected at least once in each year; (m) Each sleeping and dining room shall be provided with a floor of suitable material; (n) Proper cooking vessels and washing vessels shall be provided by the employer. an em 7. pI(o1y. ) erE f voerr"vt hbeuialcdcinom2 U ' manoddactIo • Omnpoafrtmsheenatreprrsovoidr esdugbayr a D w .c u o o r t o i k m e e s r m s o o f - workers not being a shearing-shed or sugar works shall be da.ted. kept clean by the persons occupying the same during their occupation thereof; and whenever, in the opinion of an inspector, any such building or compartment is not being kept clean by the persons occupying the same, such inspector shall give to the employer a notice in writing to that effect, and such employer may thereupon have such building or compartment restored to a Clean state, and thenceforward kept so from day to day. (2.) No person. occupying any such building or compartment as aforesaid shall cause or suffer any damage or defacement to be done to such building or compart~ ment or to any property of an employer contained therein; and whenever, in the opinion of an inspector, any damage or defacement has been done either by design or negligence by any such person, such inspector shall give to the employer a certificate to that effect, and such employer may have such damage or defacement repaired. (3.) The employer may in any such case as aforesaid, and without prejudice to any other remedies to which he may be entitled, deduct the e:x:penses of any work neces- sary for either of the aforesaid purposes from the wages due or accruing due to the person or in equal parts from the wages due or accruing due to the persons offending, .or may recover such expenses asa debt from such person or from such persons jointly in any court of competent jurisdiction, together with reasonable costs of the action, but so that the employer shall not be entitled to recover from anyone person more than five pounds in respect of such expenses.

~~ 60 MASTERS AND SERVANTS. Shearers and Sugar Workers Accommodation Act. 5 Enw. VII. No. 9, Inspection. 8. Every inspector shall, once at least in every oanf dacrecgoumlamtIoO. n t we1ve months, and may, wh enever he · t h· Inks fi,tI· nSpeC t dation. all buildings used for accommodating shearers or sugar workers situated within his district; and, if at the comple- tion of the inspection the inspector is satisfied that the requirements of this Act have theretofore been complied with by the employer, he shall, if so required by the employer, give to him a certificate to that effect. The inspector shall include in such certificate a statement regarding the cleanliness or otherwise of any buildings, having regard to the provisions of the last preceding section; and such certificate shall, for all purposes and in all proceedings, be prima jacie evidence of the facts therein stated. Every inspector shall, not later than the thirty-first day of March in every year, make a full and detailed report to the Minister of his inspections. Every inspector making any such inspection shall, at the request of an employer, produce and show the certifi- cate of his appointment. Exemption. 9. Under special circumstances the Minister may, by order, wholly or partly exempt any employer from the operation of this Act for such period as may be fixed by the order. The Minister mav in his discretion from time to time delegate to any inspe~tor the powers vested in him by this section. . Right of entry. 10. For the effectual execution of this Act, every inspector shall at all times have the right of ingress and egress to and from every premises, shearing-shed, sugar plantation, and sugar works, and any building used for accommodating shearers or sugar workers. Notice to 11. When an inspector, after making such inspection, Aeocmt. ply with has reason to believe that thel'equirements of this Act have not been complied with, he shall, by notice in writing to the employer, direct him within a reasonable time to be therein mentioned to comply with such requirements. He shall also in the notice specify the matters with respect to which he considers the said requirements have not been complied with. The notice may be served on the employer personally or by being left at his usual or last known place of abode.

MASTERS AND SERYANTS. 8961 1905. Shearers and Sugar Workers Accommodation Act. 12. (1.) When an inspector has ascertained that an ~ o~ plaint to. employer served W " Ith such notICe has neglected to comply JJ' uasitlluCreestoof with any of the requirements of this Act specified in such Amply with notice, such inspector may upon a complaint cause the ct. employer to be summoned before a police magistrate or any two justices of the peace sitting in court of petty sessions to answer the matter of such complaint. (2.) The court may, if satisfied that any of the Order~n such requirements of this Act have not been complied with, complamt. order the employer to comply with such requirements, and may in the order specify what things shall be done by the employer, and the time within which the order shall be carried out, or may dismiss the complaint; and in any case the court may award costs to the inspector or the employer. (:3.) If th e emp] oyer fails to carry out an order made P~ nalty on as aforesaid, he shall, unless he satisfies the court that he ! : ~ : ; ~ ! ~ has used all due diligence to carry out the order, be liable order. to a penalty not exceeding twenty-five pounds, and for every day which has elapsed since the expiration of the time limited in the order for the carrying out thereof to a further penalty not exceeding one pound. 13. Any person who obstructs an inspector in the O1~ strnction exercise of his powers under this Act shall be liable to a of mspector. penalty not exceeding twenty pounds. 14. Every employer shall, not less than a week before Notice of the commencement of the shearin! U ! or crushing seas • on in cmoemnmt 0 enfcwe- ork • each year, as the case may be, post or cause to be dehvered to the inspector of the district~ at his official address, a notice of such intended commencement. '1'he inspector may excuse the want of such notice in any case where owing to a sudden emergency it has become necessary to immediately commence work at a sugar works or on a sugar plantation, or at a shearing-shed, provided notice that work has commenced is given as aforesaid within twenty-four hours thereafter. 15. Complaints for offences against or for failure to Ju~sdi.ction comply with this Act shall be heard and determined in of JustIces. a summary way by and before a police magistrate or any two justices of the peace. 16. All penalties recovered under this Act shall be Appropriatioo paid into the Consolidated Revenue. of penalties.