ENG-1962 — Page 73

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EMPLOYMENT

departments and interested organizations. The Labour Department took part in a safety first exhibition held at the Princess Alexandra Community Centre, Tsuen Wan. Photographs, posters and a selec- tion of safe industrial equipment were exhibited, together with some defective components which had caused accidents. Pamphlets dealing with safe practices were distributed and films on industrial safety were shown.

The Registry of Trade Unions administers the Trade Union Registration Ordinance, 1961, which came into force in January 1962. This ordinance repealed and largely replaced the law relating to trade unions contained in the Trade Unions and Trade Disputes Ordinance, which has been re-titled the Trade Disputes Ordinance. The registry deals with applications for registration by new trade unions. It also registers alterations to rules, changes of name, amalgamations or dissolutions of registered unions. The registrar also has the power to cancel the registration of a union in certain circumstances. Registered unions are required by law to keep accurate accounts, which must be audited by a person approved by the registrar, and to forward them to the registrar within three months of the end of the union's financial year. Unions must also give to the registrar before 1st April each year a return for the 12 months ended 31st December in the previous year, showing membership figures, the names and occupations of the principal officers and the name of the auditor.

The year ended with 315 unions on the register, compared with 312 in December 1961. Seven, new organizations were registered during the year but four unions had their registrations cancelled at their own request. The 315 unions consisted of 240 workers' unions with a total declared membership of 165,068, 60 organiza- tions of merchants or employers with a declared membership of 7,613, and 15 mixed organizations with a total membership of 8,688.

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Trade Unions. With few exceptions trade unions are affiliated to, or associated with, one of two local federations which bear alle- giance to opposing political groups. Divided politically, and further splintered by language, the number of unions has grown beyond practical needs, and divergent loyalties have prevented those with