ENG-1964 — Page 32

EMPLOYMENT

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scales which are published monthly by the Labour Department. This index is calculated on the basis of a survey carried out in 1948. A base of 100 fixed for March 1947 is used and the index normally shows month by month fluctuations reflecting, for exam- ple, the rise in commodity prices before Chinese New Year or as a result of typhoons affecting fish and vegetable prices. During this year the index fluctuated between 124 and 133 with an average of 126.

A new Consumer Price Index to reflect expenditure patterns over a wider range of the community will be based on a survey of household expenditure which was completed in August. Nearly 3,000 households took part in the survey and an examination of their budgets will show the relative importance of different kinds of commodities and services over a period of twelve months so as to provide a weighing basis for the price index.

The Factories and Undertakings Ordinance is the basis for control of hours and conditions of work in industry. There are no legal restrictions on the hours of work for men. Most of those in industry work ten hours a day or less, while government employees and those in concerns operating on western lines work eight hours. Regulations made under the ordinance provide for maximum daily hours, limited overtime, weekly rest days and rest periods for women and young people. The Industrial Employment (Holidays with Pay and Sickness Allowance) Ordinance provides for six annual holidays to be given to workers in industrial establishments, and for sickness allowance up to 12 days a year.

Young people between the ages of 14 and 16 may work only eight hours a day, with a break of one hour after five hours' con- tinuous work. Children under the age of 14 are prohibited from working in industry, and no woman or young person is allowed to work at night or underground. Restrictions on the hours of work for women, introduced on 1st January 1959, have resulted in a decrease in the number of hours worked by men employed in the same concerns. By the end of 1964, cotton spinning, cotton weaving and silk weaving mills had introduced a system of three eight-hour daily shifts and it was estimated that 23,341 men and 20,885 women were working eight hours a day. A rest period of one hour a day is customary throughout industry, but when working hours exceed eight a day, the rest period may be prolonged to as