Pastures Past: Shearers' quarters were not always fit for living

The Shearers' Accommodation Bill was before Parliament in 1919.

Kem Ormond takes a look at the world of farming back in the day.

Over the years, shearers’ quarters haven’t always been the most luxurious of accommodations.

They are almost a thing of the past now and very few sheep stations, apart from large high-country properties where shearers are there for weeks on end, have shearers’ quarters.

Often the exterior was corrugated iron, and the interior tongue and groove wood, usually native timber, a coal range for cooking and heating, and it was first-in, first-served when it came to claiming a bed.

It was the duty of the farmer to provide adequate accommodation for the shearers.

Some farmers found themselves in court due to providing insufficient and unsuitable accommodation, such as the one reported in the Whanganui Chronicle in 1948.

The shearers.

Accommodation question.

Reforming bill.

(Special to “Mail”).

Waipawa Mail, 30 October 1919.

Wellington, Last night.

Under the Shearers' Accommodation Bill, now before Parliament, inspectors are to have free right of ingress and egress to and from sheds or any other places in which any shearers may be employed, or any place provided for shearers' accommodation.

A penalty of up to £20 is provided for any obstruction or interference with inspectors.

The details of the accommodation are as follows:—

(a) There shall be separate sleeping quarters and dining quarters.

(b) There shall be a sufficient supply of furniture and necessary utensils, and sufficient provision shall be made for a supply of drinking water, and of washing water, and for lighting, heating, ventilation and sanitation.

(c) The sleeping quarters shall contain at least four hundred and eighty feet of air space for each person to be accommodated therein.

(d) Immediately prior to employment of shearers in any season the shearers’ quarters shall be fumigated or disinfected by the employer to the satisfaction of an inspector.

(e) Suitable provision shall be made for storing meat and other perishable provisions.

(f) Suitable provision shall be made for the drying of clothes.

(g) Suitable first aid appliances shall be provided.

Inspectors may modify the requirements in special cases, for instance: —

(a) In the case of any accommodation that is already provided before the coming into operation of this Act.

(b) In any case where he is satisfied that owing to special circumstances it is or has been impracticable to provide the accommodation required by this Act to be provided,

(c) In the case of any shearer whose ordinary residence is in the immediate neighbourhood of his place of employment.

(d) In any case where he is satisfied that such requirement is unnecessary.

The penalty for failure to provide proper accommodation is £25 and a further fine of £2 for every day during which such failure continues.

If the shearers damage the accommodation they are to be liable to penalties and a deduction from their wages for such damage.

Shearers are to keep the accommodation clean.

Inspectors are to have one month’s notice of the date of the commencement of shearing.

Shearers’ work

“Bad Conditions.”

Housing criticised.

Hawke’s Bay Tribune, June 21, 1930

Welllington, June 20.

A strong protest against the living conditions of shearers in various parts of the country was made by a deputation from the New Zealand Workers' Union, which waited upon the Minister of Labour (Hon. S. G. Smith) yesterday.

The deputation was introduced by Mr. R. McKeen, M.P., other members of Parliament present being Mr. R. Semple and Mr. C.H. Chapman.

It was pointed out to the Minister that shearers were supposed to work under the Shearers Accommodation Act, which provided for good living quarters on farms and other facilities, giving for them the necessities of life.

It was stated that in many cases the men were forced to put up with extremely bad conditions.

The Minister gave his assurance that the question would be fully investigated and that if possible he would make a personal inspection of accommodation in some parts.

Farmer fined for not providing suitable shearers' quarters

Wanganui Chronicle, September 7, 1948

“Defendant does not appear in court to explain the position”, commented Mr. J. H. Salmon, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court, Whanganui, yesterday, when imposing a fine of £5 on Walter R. Harding, sheep farmer, Wanganui. charged with failing to provide sufficient and suitable accommodation for all shearers employed by him at Waiouru.

A further charge, that being an employer within the meaning of the Shearers Accommodation Act 1919, he failed to comply with a notice in writing served by the Inspector of Factories, requiring him to provide accommodation in accordance with the Act, was adjourned for two months.

The Inspector of Factories, Mr. W. J. Roydhouse, said that notice was served on defendant in August, 1946, requiring him to carry out certain work on the shearers' quarters on his farm in Waiouru.

The Act required that each shearer must have 480 cubic feet of space, but defendant had accommodation for only eight shearers, instead of fourteen.

There were five rooms in the building, and the deficiency in the air space was about 100 cubic feet per person per room.

The building was not in good condition.

The roof required attention, the kitchen floor was unsafe and laundry and drying facilities appeared to be lacking.

“The requisition was sent to defendant in August, 1946, and received by his manager, but nothing has been done, even now,” Mr. Roydhouse added.

Defendant called at the office of the Labour Department in Wanganui, recently, however, and said that he had engaged a builder to do the work.

In view of this he would ask that the question of penalty on the second charge be adjourned for two months, said Mr Roydhouse.

The magistrate agreed to this course and imposed a fine of £5, costs 10s, on the charge of failing to provide suitable accommodation.

Both charges were laid under the Shearers’ Accommodation Act, 1919.

- Source: Papers Past