Agricultural Insurance.

Evening Star, Issue 7750, 23 October 1888, Page 2

Agricultural Insurance.

A very interesting system of insurance against sickness and accidents has been recently established in Saxony by the Government. In that country there are about 300,000 persons engaged in agriculture and forestry, and hitherto these have been excluded from the compulsory operation of the Imperial sick and accident insurance laws, except under the operation of a local option scheme. But little advantage was taken of the latter, and so a new legislative scheme has been enacted. A summary of the E revisions of this has just been issued y the American Government. As regards sick insurance, the existing organisation is so utilised that it is now compulsory oh agricultural or forest laborers to belong either to an oris kasse or hetriebs kasse, which represents the higher grade of insurance, or where these do not exist, to the gemeinde kasse, which, for a smaller’ contribution, confers somewhat: smaller, but still sufficient benefits. Funds I of lower grade, in' which agricultural or! forest laborers are enrolled, must either] revise their statutes to the level’required by law for such laborers, or the latter must] leave and enrol' themselves in a fund of! higher grade. Casual laborers are not liable i to insurance unless the statutes of the local fund require it. The family of the, employer' may be enrolled in the gemeinde kasse, but the employer himself j must join the higher fund. So far as acci-l dent insurance is concerned, this is nowi compulsory on all, and one central guild has been established for the purpose. All persons whose wages do not exceed LIOO a year are assessed on their actual earnings, while the employer and his family are compelled to insure for three times this amount. For ; the first thirteen weeks after an accident the burden of insurance falls on the sick fund, but at the end of that period or in; base of death the accident fund has to bear ■ the compensation. The whole scheme is, under the control of the' Agricultural Council: for the kingdom. In Leipsib compulsory insuranbe has also been extended to clerks and shoppisistants. ,