Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1890-08-30

sullN's III HlHlnS tlltft Is also normal
working day Qaw of June 81. 1854.
Irregular laborers may work twelve hours
per day, and regular laborers not more
than ten hours. There must be rest of
one aud one-half hours durn2 the day,
OF which at least one hour is for dinner.
Exceptions TO this may also be made by
the ministry.
Switzerland has fixed working day,
By article II, in the year 1877, a work
day consists of eleven hours, and ON the
eve Of a holiday and Saturdays only ten
hours Besides this, a working day is to
be considered rs between 6 a. IN. lin sum
mer . Il. n.y. and s p, M, Night work is
dependent upon permission. In danger
Gus work the Bundesrath can still fur
ther reduce the hours, and an extension
of a working day can also be made by
the authorities of the canton. Irregular
work, which is done before or after
regular hours, provided the same is
done by men, is not included i'll this
article, The Swiss laws 60 further than
those of any other land, At the begin
ming these laws were regarded with
great suspicion, yet strictly carried out:
and by some dissatisfied persons the mis-
fortune Overtaking several Industries,
notably the silk industry, was attributed
to these laws; yet time has proven these
laws to be good, as a ten years test has
demonstrated.
In France the law of September 8,
1S4S, is still in force, which fixes a days
labor at twelve hours. In 1851 decree
appeared, Others soon following, making
exceptions for many different manutaC.
tories and allowing laborers in same to
work thirteen to fourteen hours daily.
This called forth a protest from a Senate
committee in 1880, which recommended
the strict observance of the law of 1913
but to date there exists no normal work
day, nor is any thing being done to
establish one.
The other European countries have no
fixed laboring hours. In Great Britain,
where the best laws exist, they are dis
regarded. While they have fixed the
time for women and children at ten
hours in manufactures where women
and children are necessary besides men,
they disregard the latter.
In Germany, according to the laws
(section 1853, Sunday work is not only
forbidden, but the manufacturer can
not compel the laborer to work on Sun
days or holidays. Therefore, contract
to do Sunday work is void, and laborer
can not be discharged for refusing to do
Sunday work. Those manufactures
which must be constantly in operation
are excepted. All the various states of
Germany adhere to this law.
In Austria (section 75) all manufac.
tories must close on Sunday, except for
purposes of cleaning. Exceptions, when
good reasons are shown, can be made
by the trades minister and minister of
the interior. On holidays the assistant
laborers must finish the cleaning, etc,
necessary in time to attend church. The
Sabbath rest begins no later than a.
m. Sunday and continues for twenty
four hours.
Similar regulations are in vogue in
Hungary. Besides those mentioned, it
is stated that in those manufactures
where Sunday labor is a necessity it
must be SO arranged that the laborers
have at least one Sunday every month
or half-Sunday every two weeks free.
In Great Britain the keeping OF Sun
day holy is such custom as to make it
unnecessary to make other laws. For
the protected persons-women and chill
dren working in manufactories-they
have, besides the Sundays and regular
holidays, eight half-holidays per year,
In Switzerland Sunday labor is prohi-
bited article A. but the Bundesrath
makes exceptions for those establisch-
ments that must be in operation con-
tinuously; but even in these establish.
ments each laborer must have every
other Sunday free at least. The laws
of the cantons may designate eight days
yearly as additional holidays, which
have the same effect as Sunday. The
railroad rules compel all railroads to
allow at least one holiday in every three
weeks to railroad employees. This rule
was issued December %, 1872,
In the rest of the European countries
there are either no laws covering these
branches or those that do exist are insig-
nifcant.
LOUIS GoTTsCHALK,
T. S. Consul at Stuttgart.