The Press. TUESDAY, APRIL 26 1904 TEACHERS' SUPERANNUATION FUND.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 11877, 26 April 1904, Page 6

The Press. TUESDAY, APRIL 26 1904 TEACHERS' SUPERANNUATION FUND.

Complete success seems to have attended the effort made by the New Zealand Educational Institute to obtain an expression of the colony's opinion on the question of a superannuation fund for teachers. Every school committee in the colony is said to have been circularised by the Institute on I ho subject, the householders being asked .0 pass resolutions in favour of tbe introduction of legislation enabling the teachers to establish such a 'fund, and if the local response may be taken as on index of public feeling in other parts there is a general consensus of opinion in support of such a step. The Institute's circular wisely laid stress on the point that the teachers were not asking the Government to provide the contributions to the fund, "this would " virtually be done by teachers paying into "tlie fund a percentage of their salaries." We do not, we confess, understand that word "virtually." Either the fund is or is not to consist wholly of the contributions of the teachers. If it is not, it would have been better to explain exactly how much of the fund is to come from other sources. The Teachers' Superannuation Bill, which farmed the subject of a

deputation from the Institute to tlie Pre- 1 roier last July, set forth that the Consolidated Fund was to make up the deficiency whenever the expenditure exceeded the revenue. A good deal of objection was naturally taken by numbers outside the circle of the proposed beneficiaries under the Bill, to this proposal, as they did not tee any particular reason why one class ehould so benefit at the expense of the general body of taxpayers. Then came the actuarial report on the scheme, showing that it waa financially unsound, both aa regarded tbe male and female teacher*. The actuary gave figures to prove that the contributions which would be required to purchase the benefits greatly exceeded the sums provided in the Bill, this being especially the case with the contributions from female teachers. "To provide pensions "for the older teachers without Govern- " ment aid," he added, "ia quite impos- " sible, and in regard to new entrants, tlie ■' rate proposed is hardly sufficient to pro- " vide a pension to ilw teacher himself, " without the return of contributions or "the benefits to widows and children." He further estimated that the total sum required to be paid down, in addition to the contributions according to the scale, in order to make the scheme independent of further Government aid, would be close upon half a million. It is obviously impossible that the colony should provide such a sum. The question luu* been raised whether the actuary, in making his report, was not unnecessarily pessimistic. It. is a matter which probably only an actuary coiftd satisfactorily answer, but it is quite possible that he did not take into consideration sufficiently fully various features of the "schemes which might have given a slightly less lugubrious complexion to his report. In any case, however, the scheme aa placed before Parliament, was, undoubtedly, financially unsound in a greater or less degree, and as Mr Seddon told the deputation of teachers, it would be better to hare no scheme at all than an unsound one. He further added tliat there was one way of getting over the difficulty, and that was by increasing teachers' salaries, so that they would be able to contribute larger amounts to the fund. On that point> opposed as we are in general to the increase of expenditure in Government Department**, we are in heartiest agreement with the -"render. A good deal of attention lias been paid to educational matters of late, and the teachers' responsibilities have, as a result, been largely increased. The absence of any corresponding increase in his salary is gradually driving the male teacher out of the service, j and we are approaching the time when ! primary education in this colony will be practically in the hands of females. Excellent teachers as these are in many respects, the prospect is not altogether a cheerful one. If the Minister for Education will support his expressed belief as to the necessity for the better payment by practical proof of his sincerity, he may succeed in checking this: tendency, and be will certainly be helping the teachers to establish a superannuation scheme that will be satisfactory to themselves, and will impose no burden on tbe rest of .the community.