MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 12824, 7 June 1907, Page 5

MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES.

« A SUPERANNUATION* SCHEME. (rBESS i-SSOCIATIOX TI LEG RAM.) WELLINGTON, June 6. The Executive of the New Zealand Municipal Asseieiation has decided to embody in a Bill the proposal of Mr G. Leslie (Actuary), in his report on o scheme for municipal superannuation. The Bill is to be presented next session, llif*. following is the text of n memorandum on t.ie scheme from Mr T. F. .Martin, tho Asesoeiation's secretary:— 1. Mr Leslie framed his scheme o:_ the principle th.it the fund is to li.* self-supporting. It provides that ea< h employee shall receive as a pension onesixtieth of the total Hilary paid to him during all the years of'his contribution to the fund, until reaching tho ago of 60 years. 2. 'ihe rate of interest to be taken at four per cent. 3. The scheme does not provide a return to the employees or their families of any part of tlioir contribution;, in the event of secessions or withdrawals before 60. 4. The tables show that o youth entering nn office staff at the age of fifteen would, by paying £'1 per annum to the fund up to the age of II". secure a pension of .CI?S 17s lOd; that "_ k* v . tno *' ni ° ne reached tho age it 25, his salary had been increased to Bitch on extent a_ to enable him to afford to pay nn additional £1 per annum to the fund, this additional payment mado up to Go, would sec mc him a further pension of £17 0-j3d, or a total pension of J_4."i 18s Id; that if at 35 he can pay <i further £1 per annum, he could secure a further pension of t£9 7s llei, or a total pension < >!" Loo 6s; and that if at 4. r > he pays a further £1 per annum, this will huv him an additional pension of £4 11. 9d, or a total pension at 60 of £•".) 17s 9d. By multiplying any of these* annual contributions of £1 by any figure, the pension would bo multiplied by tho same figure. 5. Table VII. gives the contributions per cent, of the salary for the* timo being received by nn employe necessary to securo to him at Go « pension of ono sixtieth of tho total salary assumed to have been received by him, according to tho scale of salaries hitherto paid. Tin's tablo shows that an employe© joining the fund at 15, would havo to contribute £3 13s 2d per cent, por annum of his salary: ono joining at 27, £4 9s 2d per cent, per annum, and ono joining at 52, £9 Is lOd per annum. The scheme dots not provide a minimum pension, as is done under the School Teachers' scheme. 6. Tho table shows the increased amount to bo contributed if the? scheme ia to providofor a return of contributions at death before 65. A separate table is given throughout for th. case of permanent workmen. The percentages for these employees at 15, 27, and 52 years respectively. are:— £3 3s lOd, £4 3a 2d, and £9 3s, as against the percentages for other kind of employees above quoted. 7. The Actuary draws attention to the smallness of tho pensions yielded when employees ar© admitted into the scheme at the higher ages. He adds: "Such a scalo of pensions cannot be regarded as making any adequate or sufficient provision for such officers, and the question of restricting the age of entry is deserving of most careful consideration." 8. The scheme contains no provision for "back service" of employees prior to their joining the isohem©. The report shows that to provide sixtieths of salary, for members of office staffs, a sum of £24,647, _nd for permanent workmon a sum of £36,146 would have to bo found, making a total of £60,793 If one hundred and twentieths onJy were provided for hack service, tho amount required would be £40,397. 9. The scheme contains no p.-ov_uon for employees of either kind who are already over the age of 65. Mr Leslie estimates that to provide sixtieths of salary and -wages in these cases would necessitate the finding of a sum of £37,621, and that as a large number of these employees would come at once upon the fund, the immediate annual charge would bo about £5000.