REPORT OF THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMITTEE.

Colonist, Volume XVI, Issue 1663, 26 August 1873, Page 4

REPORT OF THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMITTEE.

The Committee appointed on the 22nd July, " to consider the Civil Service Aot Amendment Bill, and the Permanent Officers' Salaries Bjll, and also to consider whether it is desirable \o further amend the Acts relating to the Civil Service," reported to the House of Representatives as follows:—The Committee at their first meeting resolved to divide their inquiry under the following heads :— 1. The Pensions System. 2. The position of Officers for whose Salaries there . are Permanent Appropriations. 3. The Classification System. 4. Whether or not the Government should have the power, in any ease of prov.ed unfitness or misconduct, to dismiss an Officer without such Officei being entitled to claim investigation by a Board of Inquiry. ; 6. The mode of providing1 for Compensation for ' loss of office, when an Officer's services are dispensed with for any other cause than unfitness or misconduct. The .Committee have arrived at the following conclusions:—

PENSIONS. 1. That in computing the claim of Pensions which remained after the passing of " The Civil Service Act Amendment Aot, 1871," it is in accordance with the meaning and intention of that Act, that such computation should be based on the salaries to which the Officers were entitled, or were receiving, at and previous to the date of the passing of the Aot. ' 2. That the Colony should oontinue liable (without making wj dtduotiou in tit} from tbo laJUriw of thf

Ml UmM fail jtyM ts wlii|li eteifl divil Service Aeb imfenddientidfcjlsnj" iajbee&M entitled tinder ijtlß provisions of the Civil BerviiJe Acts of 1858,1861,1586, and 1871; Provided that siioh Pensions ihall be computed on the basis' of the salaries received by the Officers, or to which they Were entitled, on and before the passing of the Act.

3. That it be provided by Aot, that the Governor shall not grant any fresh Pension or Pensions under the Acts mentioned in Resolution No. 2, the payment of which would cause the annual payments on account of Pensions under those Acti, to exceed the sum of £9000, unless his Excellency shall be satisfied that, within the spirit and intentions of the Acts, he cannot refuse to grant a Pension or Pensions, the payment of which would- cause the annual sum of £9000 to be exceeded.

i 4. That the Pensions System, on conditions similar to those provided in "The Civil Service Act, 1866," be revived, and .that (commencing from the Ist January, 1874) an amount equal L to.2£,per cent, be deducted from the salaries of all Officers who have joined the service since the passing of "The Civil Service Act/Amendment Act, 1871," and from all increases of the:salaries of the Officers who were in the Service at that date ; and that such deductions, with the accretions of interest thereon, constitute a fund out of which Pensions shall he paid to all Officers who have joined the service since the passing of the said Act, and to all Officers in the Service previous to that time, upon the basis only of the increases to their salaries since.that date. Should the fund at any time prove insufficient, the balance to be defrayedby a pro rata contribution from all Officers entitled to Pensions. ' SALABIES PERMANENTLY APPBOPKIATED AND APPBOPBIATIONS TJNDRB PEBMANENT ACTS. 1. That it is unnecessary to alter the principle which regulates the salaries of the Officers whoie salaries are now permanently appropriated, excepting those, of the Officers of the two Houses, which, after the present Officers cease to hold their.appointments, should be regulated during the first Session of each Parliament, such regulation to bo applicable to the whole duration of each Parliament; and excepting the salary of the Direotor of the Geological Survey, which, after the present occupant of that office ceases to hold it, should be voted annually. 2. That the power of spending money without appropriation, under "The Crown Lands Act, 1858," the Coroners Act, the Justices of the Peace Act, the Juries Act, and the Lunatics Act, should be withdr.iwn, and yearly appropriations made for expenditure under the3e Acts, and other Acts of the same description. CLASSIFICATION. 1. That the Classification system should be abolished. POWEB OF DISMISSAL. 1. That the Government should be able to dismiss Officers'for misconduct or unfitness for their duties, without such Officers having the. right to insist on Boards of Inquiry, GBAIUITIES AND BETIBING ALLOWANCES. 1. That annual Appropriations'should be taken for Gratuities for loss of office; and that the power of making such payments in virtue of a Permanent Appropriation should be repealed by Act. That a Bill be introduced to give effeot to the foregoing recommendations. The evidence of Mr. Charles White, and a memorandum by Mr. Batkin, Secretary ,to the Treasury, are appended. Julius Vogel, Chairman. Mr. Charles White, Antuary under "Th 9 Civil Service Act Amendment Act, 1871," examined. The valuation of the claims of the civil servants was based upon the compulsary. retirement of each officer at the age of sixty ; and in suoh cases, where the Acts of 1858 and 1861 permitted, upon the voluntary retirement of officers after certain specified periods of service. The calculations were based upon the assumption that each officer would remain in the Service until the age of sixty, or as above (under the. Acts of 1853 and 1861), should he so long live. The probable increase of any officer's salary, or the possible disrating of any officer were not elements in the calculations. The basis of the present value of service was the average silary received during the years 1870,1871, 1872; and in the case of an officer not having served three years, the relative average was struck. The Carlisle Tables of the expectation of life were used, computing interest of money, at 5 per, cent. The present value of officers' claims under the Acts of 1858 and 1861, upon the assumption of their retaining office until the age of sixty. £243,856 18s. 3d., equivalent to 22101 months' purchase on their pay for year 1872. The present value of the same on the alternative as before -stated, viz., voluntary retirement:—£296,69l 2s. 3d., equivalent to 26 888 months' purchase on pay for 1872. The present value of claims under the Act of. 1866 : — £45,565 Is. 3d., equivalent to 7707 months'purchase on pay for year 1872. The following is from a memorandum by the Secretary of the. Treasury :— An examination of the Pension List shows, that during the fifteen years that the Act has been in operation, the annual charge has increased from nil to £7,301195. Id.; the annual increase, as shown in the statement attached being, as follows: — Incbeasj. 1858-59 Nil. 1859 60 . ... £192 1861-62 . ... 42 186162 ... ... ... 101 1862 63 ... ... ... 33 1863 64 - ... 12 1864-65 311 1865-66 1214 1866-67 ... .... ... 834 18R7-68 1041 1868-69 1697 1869 70 ... . ... ... 239 1870-71 ... ... ... 681 1871-72 620 1872-73 282 £7302 And giving an average increase of, say, £7302-*■ 14 = £521 10s. But in order to obtain a more correct average of the annual growth of the charge, th"c computation should be carried on to suoh a point as will represent equilibrium, or, in other words, to that point at which the annual charge will remain as nearly as- possible a fixed sum. Looking at the figures above quoted, it would seem as though that point were rapidly approaching, the annual increase of charge for the past three years being as follows : — . | In 1870-71 £684 In 1871-72 620 i In 1872-73 282 | while for 1873-74 the amount of the authorised ! pensions payable shows an increase of only £137. Assuming as an outside calculation that the point of equilibrium will be reached in five years' time, and that the annual charge will then be £10,000, it follows that the average annual increase during the whole twenty years will be at the rale of £500 per annum ; so that assuming all existing pensions to be otherwise provided for, any arrangement, to be made in respect of pensions yet to be granted would require to provide for an annual charge of £500 for the first year, £1000 for the second. £1500 for the third, and so on up to the twentieth year, at which point equilibrium will again be attained, at an annual charge of £10,000. From the tables prepared by the Actuary appointed under the Civil Service Act of 1871, it appears that the total salaries drawn by the officers of the Civil Service on the 14th November,- 1871, amounted to £203,358; and it would accordingly require a. contribution of £4 18s. 4d., per cent..on that amount to make ap the sum of £10,000, required as above. If, however, provision for the payment of pensions of officers in the service on the 14th November, 1871, is to be made by deductions from salaries, suoh deductions can only be made from the salaries of the officers interested, and it must be borne in mind that the number of contributors is a constantly diminishing term; consequently, a rate of deduction whioh in the earlier years of the arrangement would be sufficient ta,profide for tbo annual liability, would afterwards po^lltoi^bwUttln^^^^obj^ I