OUR NEW LAWS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 333, 21 October 1908, Page 9

OUR NEW LAWS.

PRINCIPAL ACTS OF THE SESSION. If. r EDUCATION AMENDMENT ACT. Tho Education Amendment Act, which provides a new scheme of grading of public schools, and grading of teachers' salaries, takes effect on January 1, 1909. Schools are to be graded by the education boards according to average attendance. Salaries are also to bo graded, and according to tho grade of the school the grade of tho salaries and the number of the teachers will be determined. .The following aro examples:— School of Grado I.—-One teacher, salary £90 to £120. School of Grado ll.—One teacher, salary £120 to £150. Grade V. : —Head teacher, £210 to £240; ono assistant, £105 to £135; one pupil teacher or additional assistant. Sub-Grado VIII a'. —Head teacher, £310 to £340; four assistants, of specified grades, £120 to £240; three pupil teachers or additional assistants. Sub-Grade IX b. —Head teacher, £340 to £370; seven assistants, £90 to £270; five pupil-teachers or four additional. assistants. Sub-Grade X a.—Head tcacher, £370 to £400; nine assistants, £90 to £290; six or more pupil teachers or foilr additional assistants. ■ ... The additional assistants mentioned above are to be appointed by degrees in substitution for tho pupil teachers according Ho regulations to. be gazetted. A board may also appoint probationers, the salaries and conditions to be prescribed by regulations. A teacher employed in a' public school at the commencement of the Act will not have his salary reduced by tho Act. House allowances aro scheduled in the Bill. Salaries of pupil teachers are as follow, with allowances, if obliged to live away from home:—First year, £25,"allowance £20; second year, £35, allowance £15; third year, £45, allowance £10; fourth or fifth year, £55, allowance £5. . ' Appointment of Teachers. In making appointments ' other than by transfer the Education Board must send to the school committee a list of not more than four - teachers (in order of merit) stating length of service and qualifications", 'If applications have been invited, the board shall also send tho names of all teachers who have applied. The committee may select a name from the list, and tho board must appoint the teacher so selected. ; If, however, the board proposes to transfer a teacher from ;ono position; to another, other name will be sent to" the committee. In that case, and in any other case in which only one name is sent, tho committee may forward any opinion or recommendation to tho board, and the board must take it into consideration. before making any transfer the board must take into consideration the fitness of all those teachers in its employment who have signified a desire for transfer; and before making 'any appointment otherwise than by way of transfer the board must consider the fitness of the teachers last mentioned,, and also'-of all those who have applied whether resident or employed in the district or not. Crants and Capitation. A. new scale of Government , grants to secondary schools in respect of free places is provided. . In addition to the capitation hitherto payable on technical classes, a payment not oxceeding .twice the previous rate may, with the approval of the Minister, be :inade : in-respect of the attendance of pupils who complete courses of technical instruction .approved by the Minister. ; ...The Governor in Council may;:make,regulations for tho registration of..public,-private,, and secondary schools' colours, uniforms, badges, or monograms. ■

POLICE OFFENCES AMENDMENT ACT. U f ]Tho Police a .Court to impose a fiiie 'of-£2O-as 'an'alternative to one year's .imprisonment .for. obscene s.ongs,:-writings, .and.drawings;: Thero are also provisions to, enable the Courts to'deal-more effectively with f'habitual drunkards," a term 'which' henceforth includes a. person twice convicted of breach, of a prohibition order.' •• . : A habitual drunkard may not be detained more than three years'in an institution, and may be released on probation. To supply liquor to an inmate of such an institution is an offence punishable by a fine not. exceeding £20. : "' Persons committi'ngpotfences '■"while under- ! {lie influence of to or: in lieu of. other penalty, be ordered fa'bo .de-: taincd in an institution for habitual drunkards.-' ; Fallon Women. The .term " institution for fallen women "' mbaus any institution Established for the care and reclamation of such women and for-the time boing authorised and appointed by the Governor by Order-in-Council as_ an institution for the reception and. detention of fallen women under the authority of this Act. Women or girls, convicted of certain' .offences may be committed, either in addition 1 to or in lieu of other penalty, to an institution under the Act, if the governing authority of the institution will receive them. The period of detenlion must be specified in the order, and must not be more than one year. The Governor may at any time direct the discharge of any person so detained. Escapees may. be treated as persons who have-escaped from lawful custody. In case of illness, a woman or girl may be;removed from tile institution to a. hospital'on : the order of a magistrate -or justice, ■>...' -•'A magistrate or justice may issue-a war- , rant for the arrest of a wdmair against, whom ah order for detention has been made:. ' Subject to the consent of the Minister for Justice, the governing authority of an institution may make' by-laws dealing with the mode of employment, hours of labour, and. remuneration,, if any, of the inmates,'and other matters. . : Tho Governor may make regulations ■ for the inspection and visitation of the institutions, the ' good conduct and. discipline of their inmates, the punishments that may be inflicted on them by'the governing authorities, and other matters. , WORKERS' COMPENSATION. NEW SCALE OF PAYMENTS. The - Workers' Compensation Act consolidates and amends previous legislation providing for compensation to workers by their employers on account of injuries by accident during employment. It. will como into force on nest New Year's Day. It applies to the employment of a worker in any trade or business,: and also in the following occupations, whether carried on for the employer's trade or business, or otherwise Mining, quarrying, excavation, the cutting of standing timber, including the cutting of scrub and clearing land of stumps and logs, tho erection or demolition of any building, the 'manufacture or uso of any explosive, the charge or uso- of any machinery iu motion and driven by steam or other mechanical 'power, the driving of any vchiclo drawn or propelled by horsepower or mechanico.l power, any occupation in which a worker incurs a risk of falling any distance exceeding twelve feet, if the injury or death of tho worker results from such a fall. Scale of Compensation. ; If the worker dies as:the result of. the accident, and leaves any total dependents, they will receive a sum equal to 156 times his avorage weekly earnings, or £200, whichever is the greater, hut not,in any case more than £500. Partial dependents (if there are ■no total dependents) will rcceivo thrice tho valuo of the benefits they received from' him during the twelve months immediately preceding the fatal accident. If. there are:-no dependents the funeral and modical expenses up to £20 will be paid. During total incapacity tho weekly paymont will be half the average earnings of the worker, but if his ordinary rate of pay was not less than 30s. a week, tho weekly payment shall not be less than £1.

During partial incapacity, the weekly payments will bo one-half tho difference between the previous average earnings and tho average amount nor week which tho worker can oarn after the accident. Weekly payments will not be continued far mora than six

years, and must not aggregate moro than £500. ' , The Court may award a lump sum, instead of weekly payments. > Tho ioss of both eyes, loss of both hands, loss of. both feet, loss of a hand and a foot, total and incurablo loss of mental powers involving inability to work, or total and in-curablo-paralysis of tho limbs or of mental powers, will be reckoned as total incapacity. .A worker who loses his right arm will receive 80 per cent, of the full compensation for total incapacity. The compensation for other injuries is similarly specified, down to 10 per cent, for complete deafness of one ear, and 5 per cent, for loss of a too or of one joint of a finger. There is also compensation for the following diseases contracted in tho cours of em« ploymentAnthrax, lead poisoning, mercury poisoning, phosphorus _ poisoning, arsenia poisoning, pneumoconiosis (as affecting miners only), and other diseases which may, bo gazetted. Tho Act applies to persons employed by; tlio Government. A principal and a contractor are both declared to be employers, but the principal is entitled to bo indemnified by the-contractor. . No compensation is payable if the injury is due to the serious, and wilful misconduct of tho injured worker. ! _ Proceedings for the recovery of compensation are' to be taken in the Arbitration Court. If the Court thinks an employer has been dilatory in paying compensation it may cause him to pay interest also. Workers ■ arid their employer may contract themselves out of the Act if . they have'a; separate scheme of compensation of which ;the Court approves. An employer is liable for injury to his servant even if the injury is caused by the negligence of a fellow-servant. This section applies to all employments, including those to which the other provisions of tho Act do not apply. THE PUBLIC SERVICE. ■ THE SUPERANNUATION ACT, The Public Service Classification and Superannuation Amendment Bill substitutes in place of ,the present superannuation scheme fot the Education service a scheme which is, so far as practicable, the same as that established for the Public : Service, makes miscellaneous amendments !. in ~the ■ superannuation scheme for the Public Service, and also makes provisions respecting broken time in the Railways service. Teachers' Superannuation. The Act preserves tho separate existence of the Teachers' Superannuation Board and Fund, but the conditions of teachers' super'annuation'are made essentially the sarao as those established by tho Public Service Superannuation Act, 1907, with minor variations necessitated by tho special conditions of tho Education service. Every existing contributor to the Teachers' Superannuation; Fund comes automatically, within tho scope'of the now scheme unless within six months : ;ha elects to remain' subject to the'old Act. ' The retiring-allowance for' contributors is based on their final salary instead of on their average salary during the period. of their service. ' Existing contributors will count tha whole of their back service instead of only, one-half of it as at present. ' 1 An annual subsidy of £7000 is provided for the Teachers' Superannuation Fund, corres-' ponding to-the subsidy of £20,000 provided by tho Act of 1907 for the Public Service Superannuation Fund. Public Service Superannuation. The Public Service Classification .Act, 1907* (provided that all .temporary offioers already,! appointed should, after five, years'become, permanent, and that no_ temporary,appointment! made after the passing-of thatj Act. should continue for , more than .months,.' .".These provisions .do* not apply,to oificors' iii; tho Post and Telegraph Departs ment, and this Bill now makes the same provision as to them. .. Any contributor who required ago or'length of service is'entitled to a retiring allowance whether he retires voluntarily'or compulsorily. 'L; ■ '$nU-j.butor may notjmpf a retifljp® jaJtoVOT3»&>n the ground th&jb'fo is medicaids 'unfi.t'-foi'" the'position which he l has hitherto' occupied,' although he is perfectly fit tor some'other/suitable position^which is'offered to him iii tho Public Service. ' ' _' ■ Power;' is given" to; the board to determine the rate of contribution payable by:a contributor who is reappointed to the Publio Service after retirement. By the previous law, only continuous service could be counted towards a retiring* allowance. Experience has shown, however, that this rigid rule works considerable hardship owing to the existence of accidental or very brief.intervals in the continuity of an ; officer's service. For example, on tho tranfr-' ' fei^of'an .officer from one position to another there , ; may bp an interval of a day between his retirement: from tho one position' and his apoint'ment to tho other. Clauses 60 and 61 contain an attempt to avoid hard* ships of this kind, while maintaining tha spirit of the principle that servico must bo continuous. - __, Clause 62 makes provision for the diffi. culties created by the position of those temporary officers who, by virtue of Section 15 of tho Public Service • Classification Act, ISO 7, become permanent officers i'n consequence of fivo years' temporary employment.. The clause provides that all such officers who hereafter complete, or, who have already completed their term of five years after the commencement of the Public Servico Classification Act, 1907, shall be contributors, to tho fund, and shall be entitled to count their period of 'service prior to the commence, ment of the Public Servico Superannuation Act, just as original contributors do. ; Local Authorities Superannuation. .The Local Authorities Superannuation Act' enables local bodies and tramway companies to establish superannuation funds for.-pep. sons:in their servico. 1 Every fund' must be vested in the Publio Trustee, who will invest the. moneys, 1 but will bo administered by the local authority. All expenses' incurred in establishing the fund or in its administration is to come'out of the ordinary revenue of tho local author* ity. ■ The -local authority is to guarantee tho solvency of the fund, and pay into it in addition to an annual subsidy, such - sums as may be required, to meet all claims. 1 The'subsidy paid by tho local body is to be a percentage of the total contributions paid into the fund-during the year. An examination of tho fund is to be made each triennial year. ; Local .authorities may agree to establish' a-united fund. Contributions and Benefits. • Contributions will be deducted from salaries, as follows:—(a)-Five per centum of the contributor's salary, if his age does not exceed thirty years at tho time when the first contribution becomes payable; (b) six per centum if his age .thou exceeds thirty years, but does not exceed thirty-five; (c)' seven per centum if it exceeds thirty-five, but not forty; (d) eight per centum if it exceeds forty, but not forty-five; (e) nine per'centum if it exceeds forty-five, but not lifty; and (f) ten per centum if. his ago exceeds fifty years.

Every malo contributor of not less than forty years' service, and not less than sixtyfivo years of ago, and every female of thirty years' service and fifty-fivo years of ago shall ho entitled to a retiring allowanco aa follows; — For every year of service, onesixtieth part of the annual salary, and for every fraction of, a year of that length of service the contributor shall rcccivo a proportionate part. In no caso is' the retiring allowance to exceed two-thirds of the salary. A contributor on retirement may elect to receive a refund of his contributions, in .lien of his retiring allowance. ■ If a contributor compulsorily rotires for any cause other than misconduct, he shall bo eutitled to a refund with compound interest. • If before a contributor becomes entitled to a retiring allowanco lie voluntarily- retires from the sorvice of the local authority, or is dismissed from that service 011 account of misconduct, he shall bo entitled to a refund of tho wholo amount contributed by him to the fund, but without interest. If any malo contributor leaves a wife, there shall bo paid out of the fund to the widow at her election cither an annuity of eighteen pounds during her widowhood'; or the amount of the contributions mado by. tho to the fund, less any sums ro> oeivod by him from the fund in his life, jbimft: