Montana labor news., 1936-03-05
ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINIONS
ON LABOR QUESTIONS

i. l want to know how Chapter
8 of the Laws of the Extraordinary
Session l933-34 applies to the follow
ing questions:
IN a case where a corporation owns
and operates either a wholesale or a
retail business, and the president, vice
president, secretary-treasurer and sew
eral stockholders are employed by the
corporation in the actual operation of
the business, say, in the following cap
hcities The president employed as
general manager, vice president as as
sistant manager, secretary-treasurer as
bookkeeper and other stockholders as
clerks or statesmen, etc, does the eight
hour provision of said law apply to such
employees?
20. In the case of a co-partnership,
where an employer in retail establish
ment, in order to evade the eight hour
provision Of the law, draws up arti-
cles of c~o-partnership with his en-
ployees, or some OF them, giving them
an interest in the business, and with
or without an additional salary, bonus
or commission, which amounts in the
aggregate, in an average business year,
not exceeding the employees present
salary, but would enable him to enter
into collision with his employer, as a
nominal owner or partner in the bus
iness, to defeat the purposes Of the
Act, by working a greater number Of
hours than that stipulated in the Act,
would such an arrangement be a VIC
lation Of the law?
%. In the case OF a store that keeps
open for business 10 or II hours a day
and where the clerks are paid a bonus
or commission on sales, there is an
incentive provided, through said bonus
or commission, for the clerks to work
more than the stipulated 8 hours in
order to increase their sales, and | am
satisfied that they sometimes do SO,
with or without the knowledge of the
employer, or because of his indiffer-
ence, who is responsible in this case
Is the employer and employee jointly
responsible?
"a. Does the law apply to truck
drivers who take a load of merchan-
disc in one town of $500 or more popu-
lation and deliver it in another town Of
$500 or more population? As a con
crete instance A man in Bozeman
takes his truck out at 400 A. M, takes
on a load of bread, goes to Butte, deli
vers this load to about Is retail stores;
he picks up a load in Butte, usually
at a wholesale warehouse, takes it to
Bozeman and delivers it usually to
another wholesale warehouse. l am
informed that this is a daily occur
ence, except when he is required to
leave Butte and go to either Deer
Lodge or Helena to pick up his re
turn load. This job requires from IA
to 20 hours a day. The man who owns
this trucking outfit is not, as far as |
know, engaged in either the whole
sale or retail business. Does this prac-
tice constitute a violation of the law?
IS. Surprising two merchants, each
employing one clerk, want to work
their clerks ten hours a day, and the
clerks may or may not be willing, but
in order to cvade the law, they ex-
change clerks in the middle of each
day, SO that each clerk works but )
hours in each place of business, what
could we do in a case of that sort?
The questions propounded above are
hypothetical and general. No facts OF
an actual case or alleged violation are
presented. 1t should be understood
that my opinions hereinafter expressed
are directed to general questions and
that they might be modified in part
if all the facts of an actual case were
presented. 1t should be understood
that it is difficult, if not impossible, to
lay down a general rule which will
apply to all facts and all cases.
/. Section l of Chapter g., Laws OF
l933-34 Extraordinary Session, reads
"A period of eight (s) hours shall
constitute a days work and a period
of not to exceed forty-eight (4S)
hours shall constitute a weeks work
in all cities and towns having a pop