SCHOOL TEACHERS AND SUPERANNUATION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12270, 14 May 1903, Page 6

SCHOOL TEACHERS AND SUPERANNUATION.

A DEPUTATION TO ME. SEDDON.

A DEPUTATION consisting of Messrs. K. D. Stewart (representing the executive of the N.Z.E.1.), and R. B. Heriot, and 1, U. Wells, {from the Educational Institute, Auckland Branch,., waited upon Mr. Seddon at tbr Grand Hotel, yesterday afternoon, in reference to matters connected with the superannuation of school teacheis.

Mr. P. E. Baume, M.H.Is., whe introduced the deputation, said the effect of the questions which the members of the deputation proposed to submit would be to bring the Bill at present before Parliament more ink harmony with the Railway. Superannuation Bill.

Mr. Stewart, on behalf of the institute and tho teachers of the colony, stated that at the meeting of tiie council in JJaiiie. last January, several alterations in the Bill were suggested. They recognisec' the liberality of the Government in introducing a Bill of this kind. It was a necessary thing that superannuation should be provided foi aged and infirm teachers. There were several ways in which the Bill might be modified. The Bill provided that a teacher must be 60 years old, and have had 35 years' service, before being entitled to a pension out of the funds. They thought 35 years' service, even if completed at an earlier age than 60 years, a reasonable period to entitle a teacher to superannuation if the state of his health required it. The Bill would not conic intc force until 1908. This meant that everything would lie in a state of quiescence so far as the superannuation of aged and infirm teachers was concerned up till that time. They asked * the Ministry to consider how much earlier they could fix the date. The contributions provided for were much heavier than in the case of the Railway Bill, but they were willing to pay sufficiently large sums to make the Bill financially sound. In the fiailway Bill, too, it was provided that one-sixtieth for every year of service should be given as an allowance; the Teachers Bill, for the males, only provided one-eightieth. They asked the Government to consider the advisability of putting them on the same footing in this respect. There was a slight modification suggested with regard to provision for wives and children, and there was a difficulty in the case of a contributor whose pay might be temporarily stopped on account of ill health. The) would be glad if the clause dealing with that contingency, as in clause 17 of the Railway Act. could be brought intc force. Mr. T. U. Wells pointed rat that when « teacher commenced early in life he put ia his 35 years of service long before he reached 60, and with the superannuation still some years ahead of him he would go on working to the prejudice of the children, if, as was probable, he was no longer able to do himself justice. Mr. Seddon said the keynote of the position was sounded by Mr. Stewart when he remarked upon the necessity of making tht fund financially sound. They started, with a number of teachers who contributed for only a very short period before arriving a* the retiring age, and the contibutions paid by them to the fund would be very small. What was intended in fixing the year for th« Bill to come into operation some time ahead was to allow funds to accumulate from th« contributions. Everyone would have to contribute a certain amount, and when they had old teachers coming upon the funds there would be something to meet then demand for pensions. If they started at once, depending upon the contributions coming in. the scheme would prove to be financially rotten, bankrunt from the very day it started. The first thing to do was to get the ages of the teachers, their wives, children, and submit the scheme to actuarial test, the result of which would form a basis to go upon. He would have th% matter referred to the Government actuaries. There should be the fullest confidence between them, and he would let them know the result.

Mr. Stewart inquired whether the Government would allow teachers to buy themselves into the fund. Mr. Seddon said some such system as baying in would be necessary to perfect tne Bill.

Mr. F. E. Baume thanked Mr. Seddon, on behalf of the teachers and others, for tno great interest he had manifested in education. Mr. Seddon said he hardly knew who ouent to be interested in education if he were not. seeing that both his parents and other relative.? had been connected with school teacning.