Page:Japan by the Japanese (1904).djvu/504

In printing, the majority of employés are generally adult males, sometimes with a sprinkling of children under fourteen.

In general, the working hours of operatives are twelve hours a day, although they sometimes extend to sixteen and seventeen hours. In cotton-mills the standard is twelve hours both for day and night workers, the shifts alternating every second day. In filatures the hours are from thirteen to fourteen, in power looms twelve. In hand-weaving great diversity prevails, the general rule being twelve to fifteen hours, according to season, although in some rare cases the days are as long as from sixteen to seventeen hours. In the larger shops, such as come under the second section of our classification, the working time is far more regular, averaging ten hours, with one or two hours overtime. In the third section many of the shops run steadily night and day, in which case there are two alternating shifts of twelve hours each.

Wages are calculated by the day and by piece-work, although monthly rates prevail to some extent. As a rule, accounts with labour are settled every two months, but there are still cases where pay-days are arranged half-yearly, and, more rarely still, yearly.

In the cotton-mills fully 60 per cent. of the workers are paid by the piece, and under this system, which is increasing in popularity, there is a regular fortnightly pay-day.

In a majority of shops coming under section 2 there are daily payments, modified from time to time in cases of piece-work being given out on job contract to two or more artisans.

In filature, cotton, and weaving the adult males receive about sevenpence halfpenny per day, the women about fivepence.

Machine shops and others coming under section 2 pay the ordinary worker from one shilling to one shilling and threepence per day, while to skilled artisans the rate sometimes slightly exceeds two shillings and twopence.

In match factories, on the other hand, the pay is much lower, ranging from threepence to fivepence for ordinary female operatives, and from a penny to slightly over threepence for little girls. In tobacco factories and printing-works ordinary female employés receive about fivepence, and males from tenpence to one shilling daily.

Matters relating to the control and supervision of industry were originally under jurisdiction of a Department of Industrial Affairs; but this proving unsatisfactory, there were various changes of departments, until the recent creation of a Bureau of Commerce and Manufacture, which takes direct control of all industrial matters in any way affecting the public weal. This office deals with experimental work undertaken with a