§ [The references are to Bill (41)as first printed for the House of Commons.]
§ In the Title, line 4, at end insert ("and with respect to the observance of recognised terms or conditions of employment").
§ After Clause 7, insert the following new clause—
§ Settlement of claims as to recognised terms and conditions of employment
§ (".—(1) Where a claim is duly reported to the Minister under this section—
- (a)that terms or conditions of employment are established in any trade or industry, or section of a trade or industry, either generally or in any district, which have been settled by an agreement or award, and
- (b)that the parties to the agreement, or to the proceedings in which the award was made, are or represent organisations of employers and organisations of workers or associations of such organisations, and represent (generally or in the district in question, as the case may be) a substantial proportion of the employers and of the workers in the trade, industry or section, being workers of the description (hereinafter referred to as "the relevant description") to which the agreement or award relates, and
- (c)that as respects any worker of the relevant descripton an employer engaged in the trade, industry or section (or, where the operation of the agreement or award is limited to a district, an employer so engaged in that district), whether represented as aforesaid or not, is not observing the terms or conditions (hereinafter referred to as "the recognised terms or conditions"),
§ Provided that—
- (i) no claim shall be reported under this section as respects workers whose remuneration or minimum remuneration is fixed (otherwise than by the employer, with or without the approval of any other person) in pursuance of any enactment other than this section or in the case of whom provision is made by or under any enactment other than this section for the settlement of questions as to remuneration or minimum remuneration;
- (ii) no claim shall be reported under this section as respects terms or conditions fixed as aforesaid.
§ (2) For the purposes of this section a claim, to be duly reported, must be reported to the Minister in writing by an organisation or association being, or represented by, one of the parties mentioned in paragraph (b) of the foregoing subsection; and if in the opinion of the Minister the report of a claim does not contain sufficient particulars he may require further particulars to be given, and if he does so the report shall not be treated as having 989 been duly made until the Minister is satisfied that the particulars required have been given.
§ (3) If on a reference under this section the Industrial Court is satisfied that the claim is well founded, then unless the Court is satisfied that the terms or conditions which the employer is observing are not less favourable than the recognised terms or conditions the Court shall make an award requiring the employer to observe the recognised terms or conditions as respects all workers of the relevant description from time to time employed by him.
§ (4) An award under this section shall have effect as an implied term of the contract of employment, and shall have effect from such date as the Industrial Court may determine, being a date not earlier than the date on which, in the opinion of the Court, the employer was first informed of the claim giving rise to the award by the organisation or association which reported the claim to the Minister; and an award under this section shall cease to have effect on the coming into operation of an agreement or aware varying or abrogating the recognised terms or conditions.
§ (5) For the purposes of this section the carrying on of the activities of public or local authorities shall be treated as the carrying on of a trade or industry.")
§ Clause 8, page 5, line 27, leave out ("Wages Councils (Amendment) ") and insert ("Terms and Conditions of Employment").
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEMy Lords, the Bill as introduced and passed through your Lordships' House has not, in fact, been amended in another place but during the proceedings there opportunity was taken to introduce a new clause concerning a matter which was entirely outside the scope of the Bill which your Lordships previously considered and which has therefore necessitated a change in the Title. No doubt your Lordships would wish me to speak to all three Amendments together.
The House will remember that with the Defence Regulations finally coming to an end, the Industrial Disputes Order, among others, was abolished and that that involved the winding up of the Industrial Disputes Tribunal, of which the noble Lord, Lord Terrington, was Chairman. When my right honourable friend the Minister of Labour and National Service announced this last November he said that he considered it would be a good thing to have some machinery which would continue this function and give a statutory position to this kind of arbitration so far as that were called "issues" (and are now called "claims") under the Industrial Disputes Order were concerned. When the Bill reached the other place on December 10 last my right honourable 990 friend the Minister indicated that if agreement on this subject could be reached between the trade unions and the employers federation opportunity might be taken on this Bill to introduce it here, in this measure, which would, of course, save a considerable amount of Parliamentary time. Agreement was reached before the Bill had finished its Committee stage in the other place, and on April 9—about three weeks ago—this new clause was introduced and accepted.
As your Lordships will see, it provides that where terms and conditions of employment are established in any trade or industry not covered by a wages council, or statutory wage regulation, and where the parties to the agreement represent a substantial proportion of the employers and workers, when it is reported to the Minister that some particular employer, in respect of any worker in the industry, has failed to observe these generally agreed terms and conditions, the Minister, if he cannot first persuade the parties to agree, shall refer the matter to the Industrial Court (as your Lordships know, that is the body which was established in 1919 and is now under the chairmanship of Sir John Forster), and the decision of the Industrial Court will be legally binding on the parties concerned.
This is the first time that arbitration has been given statutory force since the setting up of the Industrial Court under the Act of 1919 itself which I believe shows how very careful we are in this country about giving statutory effect to these matters. I think it was generally agreed that the emergency war-time order concerning industrial disputes, although it had been prolonged by Regulation 1376 some years ago, was now out of date. But the right honourable gentleman the Minister of Labour and National Service, with, I believe, the agreement of all Parties, considered that it would be a good thing that statutory embodiment should be given to this part of its provisions. The clause was unanimously accepted in the other place after having been agreed to by both sides of the industry. I hope, therefore, that it will equally receive the unanimous approval of your Lordships. The first and third Amendments are, of course, consequential upon the new clause. I beg to move that this House doth agree with the Commons in the first Amendment.
§ Moved, That this House doth agree with the Commons in the said Amendment.—(The Earl of Dundee.)
§ LORD SILKINMy Lords, we are grateful to the noble Earl for his very careful explanation of these Amendments, which are fairly clear. I understood the noble Earl to say first that this Bill had not been amended by another place, but this is a very substantial and far-reaching Amendment. I take it that the Bill has been altered by the Commons and that these Amendments have been agreed by all sections of that place. Would that be true?
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEECertainly, my Lords. I said that the Bill originally before your Lordships had not been amended but, as I tried to explain, this new clause concerns a matter which was reaily outside the scope of the original Bill, and that is why the Title has had to be altered. I hope that I have also made clear to your Lordships that this new clause was unanimously and very gladly accepted by all Parties in the other place.
§ LORD SILKINMy Lords, that is my understanding. The Bill passed in its original form in this House, without any Amendment.
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEYes.
§ LORD SILKINAnd this is a Commons Amendment which has been approved by all sections of the Commons, in all Parties, and therefore this becomes an agreed Bill. Having just had the opportunity of looking at the Amendment, it seems to me certainly to be very far-reaching, yet one which we on this side can approve; and we therefore raise no objection to it. I take it that when an award has been made by the Industrial Court, it then, under Clause 4, becomes a contractual obligation on the part of the parties to carry it out and it may affect both the employer and the worker. That is so?
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEYes.
§ LORD SILKINAnd the remedy for either of them would be proceedings in the courts—
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEYes.
§ LORD SILKIN—for the enforcement of the terms of the award, as if it were an ordinary contract into which the 992 parties had entered. I think that that is the effect of Clause 4 of this Amendment.
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEMy Lords, the noble Lord is perfectly correct. The effect would be that the judgment of the Industrial Court would become legally binding, and any party to the agreement which desired to enforce it could do so by having recourse to the ordinary civil courts. I should imagine that in practice it would not be necessary to do this and that the judgment would be obeyed; but that is the sanction behind it.
§ LORD LATHAMMy Lords, I take it, therefore, that it would be enforceable, if the circumstances so required, in damages, because you cannot get, I believe, specific performance in regard to personal services. It would be a claim in damages by the workman against his employer.
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEThe contract would also be enforced. For example, if the employer was paying a rate of wages below that which had been agreed by the trade as a whole, and if the Industrial Court gave judgment to the effect that he must come into line, the employer would then be legally obliged by Statute to pay the rate of wages which had been agreed upon by the rest of the trade; not just to give damages for having failed to do so.
§ LORD LATHAMMy Lords, supposing he fails to do so?
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEMy Lords, then one has a claim—
§ LORD LATHAMIn damages.
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEE—a claim to what one ought to have been paid and has not been paid under one's contract.
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEMy Lords, I beg to move that this House doth agree with the Commons in the next Amendment.
§ Moved accordingly, and, on Question, Motion agreed to.
§ THE EARL OF DUNDEEMy Lords, I beg to move that this House doth agree with the Commons in the remaining Amendment.
§ Moved accordingly, and, on Question, Motion agreed to.