View report page

Shops Acts, 1912-1936.
It is the duty of every local authority to enforce within their
district the provisions of the Shops Acts and of the Orders made
thereunder, and for that purpose to institute and carry on such
proceeding's in respect of failures to comply with or contraventions
of the Acts and Orders as may be necessary to secure the observance
thereof, and to appoint inspectors.
An inspector so appointed is given for the purposes of his
powers and duties in relation to shops all the powers conferred in
relation to factories and workshops on inspectors by the Factory
and Workshop Act, 1901, and an inspector may, if so authorised
by the local authority, institute and carry on any proceedings
under the Acts on behalf of the authority.
With the introduction of the Shops Act, 1934, a considerable
amount of inspection work was necessary; in fact, it meant that
every shop in the Borough had to be visited in order to see that
the requirements of the Act were complied with, thus the clerical
side of the work was greatly increased.
In pursuance of their duties, Inspectors have to satisfy themselves
that assistants are given a weekly half-holiday, that shops
are closing in accordance with the general closing order and the
local closing order, that notices are properly displayed, that the
statutory intervals allowed for rest and meals are carried out,
that seats are provided for women assistants, that the prescribed
number of hours of employment of those under 18 years of age
are observed, that records are kept as to hours worked, meal
intervals, rest periods, and particulars of all overtime in respect of
young persons, and that the restrictions of night employment and
early mornings are observed.
The total number of visits made by the Inspectors during the
year was 6,981, and 1,775 infringements were detected. The
majority of these were minor irregularities, in respect of which
1,342 verbal cautions were given. In cases of a more persistent
nature, 289 written warnings were issued, and in 9 cases it was
found necessary to institute legal proceedings (see page 72-73).
The provisions of the Shops Acts are carried out by Messrs.
E. J. Ferrier and C. J. Genery, the Shops Inspectors, and the
following Table shows the work performed in connection therewith:—
76