Agricultural Wages Act 1948

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 denned by the Board as being overtime employment, and, without prejudice to the generality of the preceding words, a minimum time fate 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.