840 



Earnings of Agricultural Labourers, [jan., 



classified, according to the nature of their duties, as horse- 

 men, cattlemen, shepherds and ordinary labourers, but in 

 Wales and Ireland, owing to the large number of compara- 

 tively small farms on which the few labourers employed are 

 required to perform indiscriminately any necessary duties, 

 such distinctions are not generally made. The average 

 weekly earnings in 1907 of horsemen, cattlemen, shepherds 

 and ordinary labourers in England and Scotland were ascer- 

 tained to be : — 



England. Scotland. 

 s. d. \ s. d. ■ 



Horsemen 18 9 19 8 



Cattlemen 19 I 19 4 



Shepherds 19 7 20 5 



Ordinary Labourers ... ... 17 6 18 11 



In explanation of the somewhat higher earnings of horse- 

 men, cattlemen and shepherds, it may be stated that they 

 have greater responsibilities and longer working hours than 

 the ordinary labourers. On week-days their working time 

 is frequently longer than that of an ordinary labourer, and 

 the animals in their charge also require attention on Sundays. 

 The hours of labour of ordinary labourers in the summer 

 months are usually u or 12 per day, with intervals of 1^ to 

 2 hours for meals; in a few cases the working time on 

 Saturdays is slightly reduced, but this is not general. In 

 winter the working time is generally limited by the hours 

 of daylight. 



The average earnings in 1907 of the predominant class of 

 agricultural labourers, when compared with the average earn- 

 ings in 1898, the date of the first Enquiry, show a rise of 

 5 per cent, in England and of 8 per cent, in Scotland. As 

 compared with the earnings prevailing at the date of the 

 second Enquiry (1902), the averages show little change. 



For a certain number of farms information has been 

 furnished as to the course of wages of ordinary agricultural 

 labourers in England, Wales and Ireland, and married horse- 

 men in Scotland over a much longer period and in all four 

 countries the figures indicate a material rise. The average 

 wages at these farms in 1907 were higher than the average 

 wages in 1880 by 10 per cent, at the 156 farms in England 

 and Wales, 17 per cent, at the 98 farms in Scotland, and 

 24 per cent, at the 27 farms in Ireland. 



