Agricultural Wages Act 1948
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1948 c. 47 |
| Year | 1948 |
Agricultural Wages Act, 1948.
(11 & 12 Geo. 6.) CHAPTER 47.
An Act to Consolidate the Agricultural Wages (Regulation) Acts, 1924 to 1947, and so much of the Holidays with Pay Act, 1938, as enables a wage regulating authority to make provision for holidays and holiday remuneration for workers employed in agriculture in England and Wales.
[13th July 1948]
Be it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
The Agricultural Wages Board and Agricultural Wages Committees.
1 The Agricultural Wages Board for England and Wales.
(1) There shall be a Board, to be called the Agricultural Wages Board for England and Wales (in this Act referred to as ‘the Board’), which shall have, in relation to each of the counties and combinations of counties in England and Wales for which agricultural wages committees are established under the next following section, such functions with respect to the fixing of minimum rates of wages for workers employed in agriculture and of directing that such workers shall be entitled to be allowed holidays, and such other functions, as are conferred on the Board by the subsequent provisions of this Act.
(2) In the exercise, in relation to a county or combination of counties, of their functions under this Act with respect to fixing, cancelling and varying rates of wages, reckoning benefits and advantages as payment of wages and the payment of premiums in respect of apprentices or learners the Board shall, without prejudice to any other provision of this Act, have regard to representations made to them by the agricultural wages committee established under the next following section for the county or combination of counties.
(3) The provisions of the First Schedule to this Act shall have effect with respect to the constitution and proceedings of the Board.
2 Agricultural wages committees for counties and combinations of counties.
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, there shall be established, by order of the Minister made by statutory instrument, an agricultural wages committee for each county in England and Wales:
Provided that—
(a ) as respects each combination of counties specified in the Second Schedule to this Act, there shall, in the first instance, be established as aforesaid a committee for the combination instead of a committee for each county; and
(b ) if, in the case of each of the respective committees for two or more counties, there is passed by the members of the committee representing employers and the members thereof representing workers in agriculture a resolution in favour of combining the counties for the purposes of this Act, there may, if the Minister thinks it expedient, be established as aforesaid a committee for the combination of counties instead of separate committees for the several counties.
(2) Where an agricultural wages committee has been established for a combination of counties, the Minister at any time thereafter may, and on the representation of the committee by resolution of the members thereof representing employers and the members thereof representing workers in agriculture shall, by statutory instrument dissolve the committee.
(3) A combination of counties for which an agricultural wages committee is established under this section shall, until the committee is dissolved, be deemed for the purposes of this section and the subsequent provisions of this Act to be one county.
(4) The functions of agricultural wages committees under this Act shall, subject to the provisions of this Act and any order made thereunder, be exercised in accordance with any directions in that behalf given by the Board.
(5) A resolution for the purposes of paragraph (b ) of the proviso to subsection (1) of this section or of subsection (2) thereof, as the case may be, that is passed at a meeting of an agricultural wages committee unanimously by such of the members thereof representing employers and such of the members thereof representing workers in agriculture as are present and voting shall be deemed, for the purposes of the said paragraph (b ) or the said subsection (2), as the case may be, to be a resolution of those members.
(6) The provisions of the Third Schedule to this Act shall have effect with respect to the constitution and proceedings of agricultural wages committees.
Wages and Holidays.
3 Power of Agricultural Wages Board to fix rates of wages, and holidays.
(1) Subject to and in accordance with the provisions of this section, the Board shall have power, for each county for which an agricultural wages committee is established under this Act,—
(a ) to fix minimum rates of wages for workers employed in agriculture; and
(b ) to direct that any such workers shall be entitled to be allowed by their employers holidays of such duration as may be specified in the direction.
(2) The powers of the Board with respect to the fixing of minimum rates of wages as aforesaid shall be powers—
(a ) to fix minimum rates for time work;
(b ) to fix minimum rates for piece work;
(c ) to fix minimum rates for time work, to apply in the case of workers employed on piece work, for the purpose of securing to such workers a minimum rate of remuneration on a time work basis;
(d ) to fix separate minimum rates by way of pay in respect of holidays;
and the exercise by the Board of their powers under paragraph (a ) of this subsection shall be obligatory:
Provided that the minimum time rate for piece work shall not in any case be higher than the minimum rate which, if the work were time work, would be applicable thereto by virtue of paragraph (a ) of this subsection.
(3) A direction under paragraph (b ) of subsection (1) of this section that a worker shall be entitled to be allowed a holiday shall not be given unless both minimum rates of wages in respect of the period of the holiday and minimum rates of wages otherwise than in respect of the holiday have been or are being fixed under this section for that worker, shall provide for the duration of the holiday's being related to the duration of the period for which the worker has been employed or engaged to be employed by the employer who is to allow the holiday and, subject as aforesaid, may make provision as to the times at which or the periods within which, and the circumstances in which, the holiday shall be allowed; and the power to fix separate minimum rates of wages by way of pay in respect of holidays shall include power to make provision with respect to the times at which, and the conditions subject to which, those wages shall accrue and shall become payable, and for securing that any such wages which have accrued to a worker during his employment by any employer shall, in the event of his ceasing to be employed by that employer before he becomes entitled to be allowed a holiday by him, nevertheless become payable by the employer to the worker.
(4) Any such minimum rates of wages as are mentioned in subsection (2) of this section may be fixed so as to vary according as the employment is for a day, week, month or other period, or according to the number of working hours, or the conditions of the employment, or so as to provide for a differential rate in the case of employment defined by the Board as being overtime employment, and, without prejudice to the generality of the preceding words, a minimum time rate for piece work may be fixed so as to provide for a differential rate for work done in such circumstances that, if it were time work, it would be treated as overtime for the purposes of the minimum rate applicable thereto by virtue of paragraph (a ) of that subsection.
In the exercise of their powers under this subsection, the Board shall, so far as is reasonably practicable, secure a weekly half-holiday for workers.
(5) The Board may, if they think it expedient, cancel or vary a minimum rate fixed or a direction as to holidays given under this section.
(6) The powers conferred on the Board by this section shall be exercised by order made in accordance with the provisions of the Fourth Schedule to this Act.
(7) Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing the Board fixing or varying a minimum rate of wages so as to secure that workers employed in agriculture receive remuneration calculated by reference to periods during the currency of their employment.
4 Enforcement of wages and holidays orders.
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, if an employer fails—
(a ) to pay to a worker to whom an order under the last preceding section applies wages at a rate not less than the minimum rate fixed by the order; or
(b ) to pay to any such worker, in respect of a holiday, wages at the times and subject to the conditions specified in the order; or
(c ) to allow to any such worker the holidays fixed by the order;
he shall be liable on summary conviction in respect of each offence to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds and, in the case of an offence consisting of a failure to pay wages in accordance with...
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