LABOR.
HOURS.

Acts of 1909, Chapter 514, Sections 37, 38, 40, 41, amended by Acts of 1911,

Chapter 494.

Hours for Public Employees. SECTION 1. The service of all laborers, workmen and mechanics, now or hereafter employed by the commonwealth or by any county therein or by any city or town which has accepted the provisions of section twenty of chapter one hundred and six of the Revised Laws, or of section forty-two of chapter five hundred and fourteen of the acts of the year nineteen hundred and nine, or by any contractor or subcontractor for or upon any public works of the commonwealth or of any county therein or of any such city or town, is hereby restricted to eight hours in any one calendar day, and it shall be unlawful for any officer of the commonwealth or of any county therein, or of any such city or town, or for any such contractor or sub-contractor or other person whose duty it shall be to employ, direct or control the service of such laborers, workmen or mechanics to require or permit any such laborer, workman or mechanic to work more than eight hours in any one calendar day, except in cases of extraordinary emergency. Danger to property, life, public safety or public health only shall be considered cases of extraordinary emergency within the meaning of this section. In cases where a Saturday half holiday is given the hours of labor upon the other working days of the week may be increased sufficiently to make a total of forty-eight hours for the week's work. Threat of loss of employment or to obstruct or prevent the obtaining of employment or to refrain from employing in the future, shall each be considered to be "requiring" within the meaning of this section. Engineers shall be regarded as mechanics within the meaning of this act.

SECTION 2. Every contract, excluding contracts for the purchase of material or supplies, to which the commonwealth or any county therein or any city or town which has accepted the provisions of section twenty of chapter one hundred and six of the Revised Laws, is a party which may involve the employment of laborers, workmen or mechanics shall contain a stipulation that

no laborer, workman or mechanic working within this commonwealth, in the employ of the contractor, sub-contractor or other person doing or contracting to do the whole or a part of the work contemplated by the contract shall be requested or required to work more than eight hours in any one calendar day, and every such contract which does not contain this stipulation shall be null and void.

SECTION 3. Any agent or official of the commonwealth or of any county therein or of any city or town or any contractor or sub-contractor or any agent or person acting on behalf of any contractor or sub-contractor who violates any provision of this act shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for six months or both such fine and imprisonment for each offence.

SECTION 4. This act shall not apply to the preparation, printing, shipment and delivery of ballots to be used at a caucus, primary, state, city or town election, nor during the sessions of the general court to persons employed in legislative printing or binding; nor shall it apply at any time to persons employed in any state, county or municipal institution, on a farm, or in the care of the grounds, in the stable, in the domestic or kitchen and dining room service or in store rooms or offices.

Acts of 1909, Chapter 514, Section 43.

In a city or town, which has not accepted the provisions of sections thirty-seven or forty-two, [of chapter 514 of the Acts of 1909] nine hours shall constitute a day's work for all laborers, workmen and mechanics who are employed by or on behalf of such city or town.

Acts of 1909, Chapter 514, Section 53.

Hours for Officers, Instructors and Employees of State Penal Institutions. The hours of labor for officers, instructors, and employees of the state penal institutions shall not exceed sixty in each week; and every officer, instructor or employee whose duties require his presence at the institution seven days a week shall be given at least two days' vacation in each month, which shall be in addition to the regular annual vacation and without loss of pay. Nothing in this section shall prevent the

warden or superintendent, respectively, from requiring the services of all his officers, instructors and employees to assist in recapturing an escaped prisoner, or in any case of extraordinary emergency involving danger to property, to life, to public safety or to public health.

Acts of 1909, Chapter 514, Section 54.

There may be employed at the state prison, the Massachusetts reformatory, and the reformatory prison for women, such officers in addition to the number allowed by law on the first day of December in the year nineteen hundred and eight as the prison commissioners shall consider necessary to carry out the purpose of the preceding section.

Acts of 1909, Chapter 514, Section 55.

Hours for Employees of County Jails and Houses of Correction. The hours of labor for employees of county jails and houses of correction shall not exceed sixty in each week and every employee of a county jail or house of correction whose duties require his presence at such house of correction or county jail seven days a week shall be given at least two days of vacation in each month, which shall be in addition to any annual vacation now or hereafter allowed to said employees, and shall be without loss of pay. A county officer who violates the provisions of this section by requiring an employee to work more than sixty hours in a week shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five nor more than fifty dollars for each offence.

Acts of 1912, Chapter 533, Section 2, amended by Acts of 1913, Chapter 833, Section 1, and by Acts of 1915, Chapter 277 (General).

Hours for Employees of Street Railways. A day's work for all conductors, guards, drivers, motormen, brakemen, dispatchers and gatemen who are employed by or on behalf of a street railway or elevated railway company shall not exceed nine hours, and shall be so arranged by the employer that it shall be performed within eleven consecutive hours. No officer or agent of any such company shall require from said employees more than nine hours' work for a day's labor. Threat of loss of employment or threat to obstruct or prevent the obtaining of employment by the employees, or threat to refrain from employing any employee

in the future shall be considered coercion and "requiring”, within the meaning of this section. But nothing herein shall prevent an employee of the character mentioned in this act, if he so desires, from working more hours than those prescribed in the act for extra compensation.

Acts of 1912, Chapter 533, Section 3, amended by Acts of 1913, Chapter 833, Section 2.

A company which violates any provision of this act shall forfeit for each offence not less than one hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars.

Acts of 1912, Chapter 533, Section 4, amended by Acts of 1913, Chapter 833, Section 3. This act shall not affect any written contract existing at the date of its passage.

Acts of 1914, Chapter 746.

Hours for Certain Employees in and about Railroad Stations. SECTION 1. Employees in and about steam railroad stations in this commonwealth designated as baggagemen, laborers, crossing-tenders and the like, shall not be employed for more than nine working hours in ten hours' time; the additional hour to be allowed as a lay-off.

SECTION 2. Any employer, agent, officer or other person who violates any provision of this act shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars for each offence.

Acts of 1914, Chapter 623.

The hours of

Hours for Certain Employees of Counties. labor of officers, watchmen and matrons employed by counties in the prisons and reformatory institutions of the commonwealth shall not exceed eight a day, with the exceptions and subject to the provisions contained in section one of chapter four hundred and ninety-four of the acts of the year nineteen hundred and eleven, so far as the said exceptions and provisions are applicable.

Acts of 1909, Chapter 514, Section 44.

Hours for Members of Fire Departments. Any city may by ordinance and any town may by by-law establish the hours of labor of the members of its fire department.

Hours for Women and Children under Eighteen. (See Women and Minors, page 44.)

HALF HOLIDAYS.

Acts of 1912, Chapter 528, amended by Acts of 1914, Chapter 455.

Half Holiday for Certain State Employees. - Laborers and mechanics in the permanent service of the metropolitan water and sewerage board or the metropolitan park commission, except those employed in the pumping stations of the metropolitan water and sewerage board and at the bath-houses under the control of the metropolitan park commission, shall be given a half holiday each week during the months of April, May, June, July, August and September, without loss of pay, and, if practicable, the half holiday shall be on Saturday. If, however, the public service so requires, the metropolitan park commission and the metropolitan water and sewerage board may at any time during the year give to the laborers and mechanics in their permanent service, in lieu of the said half holidays, days off duty without loss of pay equivalent in time to the half holidays which would otherwise be given under this act.

Acts of 1914, Chapter 688.

Half Holiday for Laborers, Workmen and Mechanics employed by Commonwealth.-SECTION 1. SECTION 1. All laborers, workmen and mechanics employed by the commonwealth in any capacity, or by any officer, board or commission on behalf of the commonwealth who are permanent employees or who have been certified by the civil service commission and whose services can be dispensed with, shall be given a half-holiday on every Saturday in the year, without loss of pay.

SECTION 2. So far as is possible, all work by laborers, workmen and mechanics employed by the commonwealth or by any officer, board or commission on behalf of the commonwealth, shall be on the day-work basis.

SECTION 3. This act shall be submitted for acceptance to the voters of the commonwealth at the state election in the present year in answer to the question, to be printed on the official ballot for use at said election, "Shall an act passed by the general court