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10 1955

FACTORIES ACT, 1955

PART XIII.

Miscellaneous.

Notice of occupation of factory, and use of mechanical power.

119. —(1) A person shall, within one month after he begins to occupy, or to use any premises as, a factory, serve on the Minister a written notice stating the name of the occupier or the title of the firm, the postal address of the factory, the nature of the work, whether mechanical power is used and, if so, its nature, the name of the sanitary authority within whose district the factory is situated and such other particulars as may be prescribed, and if he fails to do so, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding ten pounds or one pound for each day since the expiration of the month aforesaid, whichever is the greater.

(2) Within one month of the date upon which mechanical power is, after the commencement of this Act, first used in any factory, the occupier shall serve on the Minister a written notice stating the nature of such mechanical power.

Posting of abstract of Act and notices.

120. —(1) There shall be kept posted at the principal entrances of a factory at which employed persons enter—

(a) the prescribed abstract of this Act,

(b) a notice of the name of the certifying doctor for the factory,

(c) every notice and document required by this Act to be posted in the factory,

but, where an inspector directs that all or any of the aforesaid documents shall be posted in particular parts of the factory, either in addition to or in substitution for the said principal entrances, his direction shall be complied with.

(2) All the documents referred to in subsection (1) of this section shall be posted in such characters and in such positions as to be conveniently read by the persons employed in the factory and, if a form has been prescribed for any document, it shall be posted in that form.

(3) If any person wilfully pulls down, injures or defaces any abstract, notice, regulations or other document, posted in pursuance of this Act, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding ten pounds.

Posting and giving copies of special regulations.

121. —Printed copies of all special regulations for the time being in force in any factory or the prescribed abstract of such regulations shall be kept posted in the factory in such characters and in such positions as to be conveniently read by the persons employed in the factory.

General registers.

122. —(1) There shall be kept in every factory, or in such place outside the factory as may be approved by an inspector, a register, in the prescribed form, called the general register, and there shall be entered in or attached to that register—

(a) the prescribed particulars as to the young persons employed in the factory,

(b) the prescribed particulars as to the washing, whitewashing or colour washing, painting or varnishing, of the factory,

(c) the prescribed particulars as to every accident and case of industrial disease occurring in the factory of which notice is required to be sent to the Minister,

(d) particulars showing every special exception of which the occupier of the factory avails himself,

(e) all reports and particulars required by any other provision of this Act to be entered in or attached to the general register,

(f) such other matters as may be prescribed.

(2) There shall be attached to the general register a copy of the certificate of the sanitary authority relating to means of escape in the case of fire.

(3) The occupier of a factory shall send to an inspector such extracts from the general register as the inspector may from time to time require for the purpose of the execution of his duties under this Act.

Preservation of registers and records.

123. —The general register and every other register or record kept in pursuance of this Act shall be preserved and shall be kept available for inspection by any inspector or by the certifying doctor for at least two years, or such other period as may be prescribed for any class or description of register or record, after the date of the last entry in the register or record.

Periodical return of persons employed.

124. —(1) The occupier of every factory shall, on or before such days as may be prescribed, send to the Minister a correct return specifying, with respect to such day or days, or such period, as may be prescribed, the number of persons employed in the factory, and giving such particulars as may be prescribed, as to the hours of employment of women and young persons employed, as to the age, sex and occupation of all persons employed and as to such other matters, if any, as may be prescribed.

(2) The occupier of any place to which any of the provisions of this Act apply shall, if so required by the Minister, make the like returns as are required by subsection (1) of this section and, in case of any default in so doing, shall be guilty of an offence under this section.

Duties of persons employed.

125. —(1) A person employed in a factory or in any other place to which any provisions of this Act apply shall not wilfully interfere with or misuse any means, appliance, convenience or other thing provided in pursuance of this Act for securing the health, safety or welfare of the persons employed in the factory or place, and where any means or appliance for securing health or safety is provided for the use of any such person under this Act, he shall use the means or appliance.

(2) A person employed in a factory or in any other place to which any provisions of this Act apply shall not wilfully and without reasonable cause do anything likely to endanger himself or others.

Prohibition of deductions from wages.

126. —Save as otherwise expressly provided under this Act, the occupier of a factory shall not in respect of anything to be done or provided by him in pursuance of this Act, make any deduction from the sum contracted to be paid by him to any person employed or receive or allow any person in his employment to receive any payment from any such person.

Advisory Council.

127. —(1) There shall be a council consisting of a chairman and eight ordinary members (in this section referred to as the Advisory Council) to perform the functions assigned to it by this section.

(2) The Advisory Council shall consider, and advise the Minister on, any matters arising on or in relation to the execution of this Act (including any proposals by the Minister to make, amend or revoke any orders or regulations under this Act) which the Minister may refer to the Council.

(3) The Advisory Council may, as they consider necessary from time to time, advise the Minister on:—

(a) the desirability of making, amending or revoking any orders or regulations under this Act;

(b) matters relating to the enforcement of the provisions of this Act or of orders or regulations made under this Act;

(c) the organisation or promotion of safety and welfare campaigns among employees and employers;

(d) the organisation of lectures, film shows or exhibitions, the publication of posters or pamphlets or any other measures, being lectures, film shows, exhibitions, posters, pamphlets or measures designed to educate employees and employers on questions of safety and welfare in factories and on methods of safeguarding and improving the health of workers.

(4) The chairman and the ordinary members of the Advisory Council shall be appointed by the Minister.

(5) The first such appointment shall be made as soon as conveniently may be after the passing of this Act and subsequent appointments shall be made from time to time as occasion requires.

(6) In appointing persons to be ordinary members of the Advisory Council, the Minister shall include persons representative of organisations of employees and of organisations of employers.

(7) The chairman and the ordinary members of the Advisory Council shall hold office for such period as the Minister may decide.

(8) On the request of the Advisory Council and subject to the consent of the Minister, an inspector may attend a meeting of the Advisory Council for the purpose of giving any information which the Advisory Council may request for the purposes of discharging its functions.

Provisions as to quarries and pit banks.

128. —(1) The provisions of the Quarries Act, 1894, shall apply to all quarries of whatever depth, but for the purposes of that Act the word “quarry” shall not include any place in which any manufacturing process (other than a process ancillary to the getting of minerals, including the breaking, crushing, grinding, screening, washing or dressing of such minerals) is carried on.

(2) The provisions of section 19 of the Mining Industry Act, 1920 (which empowers the Minister to make general and special regulations with respect to metalliferous mines) shall apply to quarries as they apply to metalliferous mines, but with this modification, that for the reference in that section to the general rules contained in section 23 of the Metalliferous Mines Regulation Act, 1872, there shall be substituted a reference to the provisions of that Act which apply to quarries.