A.D. 1927. Overcrowding in offices. (2) For the purpose of securing the observance of the requirements in this section as to cleanliness in offices, all the inside walls of the rooms of an office and all the ceilings or tops of those rooms (whether those walls, ceilings or tops are plastered or not), and all the 5 passages and staircases of an office unless they are tiled, if they have not been painted with oil or distemper or varnished once at least within seven years, shall be limewashed within every fourteen months, or if they have been papered, shall be repapered once at least 10 within every three years, to date from the time when they were last limewashed or papered, as the case may be, or if they are tiled or have been so painted, distempered or varnished, shall be washed with hot water and soap once at least within every fourteen months, to date 15 from the time when they were last washed. The floors and windows of an office shall be cleaned thoroughly once at least within every seven and twenty-eight days respectively. (3) An office in which there is a contravention of 20 this section shall be deemed not to be kept in conformity with this Act. 2. (1) An office shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be so overcrowded as to be dangerous or injurious to the health of the persons employed therein 25 if the number of cubic feet of space in any room bears to the number of persons employed at one time in the room a proportion less than five hundred cubic feet of space to every person. (2) Where an office is occupied continuously by 30 day and night or with intervals not exceeding nine hours in any twenty-four hours, the figure one thousand shall be substituted for the said figure five hundred in the first subsection of this section. (3) Where an office is so situate that the surface 35 of the floor thereof is more than five feet below the surface of the footway of the adjoining street, or of the ground adjoining or nearest to the office, the figure one thousand shall be substituted for the said figure five hundred in the first subsection of this section. (4) For the purpose of calculating the number of cubic feet of space required by this section no space 40 which is more than twelve feet above the floor of any A.D. 1927. room shall be taken into account. (5) There shall be exhibited in a conspicuous place in every office a notice specifying the number of persons 5 who may be employed in each room of the office by virtue of this section. 3.-(1) No underground room shall be used as an Underoffice unless it was so used at the passing of this Act. (2) Subject to the foregoing provision, after three 10 years from the passing of this Act an underground room shall not be used as an office unless certified by the local sanitary authority to be suitable for that purpose. (3) For the purpose of this Act, an underground room shall mean any room which is so situate that the 15 surface of the floor is more than five feet below the surface of the footway of the adjoining street, or of the ground adjoining or nearest to the room. (4) An underground room shall not be certified as suitable unless the local sanitary authority is satisfied 20 that it is suitable as regards construction, light, ventilation, and all other respects. 25 (5) If any room is used in contravention of this section, it shall be deemed to be an office not kept in conformity with this Act. (6) In the event of a refusal of a certificate by the local sanitary authority, the occupier of the room may, within twenty-one days from the refusal, by complaint apply to a court of summary jurisdiction, and if it appears to the satisfaction of the court that the room 30 is suitable for use as an office as regards construction, light, ventilation, and all other respects, the court shall thereupon grant a certificate of suitability of the room for use as an office, which shall have effect as if it had been granted by the local sanitary authority. 35 (7) Where any room has been let for use as an office, and the certificate required by this section cannot be obtained unless structural alterations are made, and the occupier alleges that the whole or part of the expenses of the alterations ought to be borne by the 40 owner, he may by complaint apply to a court of summary jurisdiction, and that court may make such order ground offices. A.D. 1927. concerning the expenses, or their apportionment between the owner and the occupier, as appears to the court to be just and equitable under the circumstances of the case, regard being had to the terms of any contract between the parties or, in the alternative, the court may, 5 at the request of either party, determine the tenancy. Sanitary 4. (1) Every office must be provided with sufficonveniences cient and suitable accommodation in the way of sanitary conveniences and lavatories. and lava tories. Rest room. (2) The accommodation in the way of sanitary 10 (a) There shall be one sanitary convenience and 15 20 (d) Sanitary conveniences and lavatories shall be 25 (3) An office in which there is a contravention of this section shall be deemed not to be kept in conformity with this Act. 5. (1) Every office in which fifty or more female 35 persons are ordinarily employed or in attendance, must be provided with a suitably equipped rest room for the use of such persons. (2) An office in which there is a contravention of this section shall be deemed not to be kept in conformity 40 with this Act. of means 6.-(1) Every office shall be furnished with a certifi- A.D. 1927. cate from the local sanitary authority of the district in which the office is situate that the office is provided Provision with such means of escape in case of fire for the persons of escape 5 employed therein as can reasonably be required under the in case of circumstances of each case, and if the office is not so fire. furnished it shall be deemed not to be kept in conformity with this Act; and it shall be the duty of the local sanitary authority to examine every such office and, on 10 being satisfied that the office is so provided, to give such a certificate as aforesaid. The certificate must specify in detail the means of escape so provided. (2) It shall be the duty of the local sanitary authority of every district from time to time to ascertain whether 15 all offices within their district are provided with such means of escape as aforesaid, and, in the case of any office which is not so provided, to serve on the owner of the premises a notice in writing specifying the measures necessary for providing the means of escape as aforesaid, 20 and requiring him to carry them out before a specified date, and thereupon the owner shall, notwithstanding any agreement with the occupier, have power to take such steps as are necessary for complying with the requirements; and unless the requirements are complied with, 25 the owner shall be liable to a fine not exceeding one pound for every day that the non-compliance continues. (3) In case of a difference of opinion between the owner of the premises and the local sanitary authority under the last foregoing subsection, the difference shall, 30 on the application of either party, to be made within one month after the time when the difference arises, be referred to arbitration (and thereupon the provisions of the First Schedule to the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901, shall have effect), and the award on the arbitration 35 shall be binding on the parties thereto, and the notice of the local sanitary authority shall be discharged, amended, or confirmed in accordance with the award. (4) If the owner alleges that the occupier of the office ought to bear or contribute to the expenses of 40 complying with the requirement, he may apply to the county court having jurisdiction where the office is situate, and thereupon the county court, after hearing the occupier, may make such order as appears to the court just and equitable in all the circumstances of the 45 case. A.D. 1927. Byelaws for means of escape from fire. Doors of offices to open from inside. Restriction of period of employment. (5) The means of escape in case of fire provided in any office shall be maintained in good condition and free from obstruction, and if it is not so maintained the office shall be deemed not to be kept in conformity with this Act. (6) All expenses incurred by a district council in the execution of this section shall be defrayed— (a) in the case of an urban district council, as part of their expenses of the general execution of the Public Health Act, 1875; and (b) in the case of a rural district council, as special expenses incurred in the execution of the Public Health Act, 1875; and those expenses shall be charged to the contributory area in which the office is situate. 5 10 15 7. Every local sanitary authority shall, in addition to any powers which they possess with reference to the prevention of fire, have power to make byelaws providing for means of escape from fire in the case of any office, and sections one hundred and eighty-two to one hundred 20 and eighty-six of the Public Health Act, 1875, shall apply to any byelaws so made. 8. (1) While any person employed in an office is within the office for the purposes of employment or meals, the doors of the office, and of any room therein 25 in which any such person is, must not be locked or bolted or fastened in such a manner that they cannot be easily and immediately opened from the inside. (2) An office in which there is a contravention of this section shall be deemed not to be kept in conformity 30 with this Act. 9. The following regulations with regard to the period of employment in an office shall be observed :(1) No person who is under sixteen years of age shall be employed: (2) No young person shall be employed continuously for more than four hours without an interval of at least one hour for a meal: (3) No young person shall be employed during the night or on Sunday: 35 40 |