HELPING THE WORKER.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16820, 24 August 1922, Page 8

HELPING THE WORKER.

PRACTICAL PROGRAMME FOR EMPLOYERS. A VALUABLE ADDRESS. Money, power, prominent positions, control of industries and men carry with them certain lesponsibilities and obligations 1. To those wo represent. 2. To those who assist us. 3. To the country generally. Our duty may not end by paying dividends. * We" may have other duties, legal or moral,’’ said Mr C H- Hewlett in an address to the Employers' Association last night. THE BUSINESS INCENTIVE. “ The primary object with which most people establish a business,” Mr Hewlett continued. “is that the organisation so established shall return a reasonable rate of profit upon the capital invested. Secondv. although there may be no legal, there is a moral obligation on a man with power to use that power to do the best he can for those who assist in making that reasonable return on the capital invested. In many instances great assistance can be given by the man of experience to lessen the burden of those less fortunate than himsell, sometimes at little cost, sometimes at no extra cost whatever. Where such assistance can he given at little cost the man with control or power is failing in his duty unless he at least examines the possibilities. Where such help can be given at no extra expense, then it is folly to neglect the opportunity. I deal with the principal opportunities which employers have of assisting their employees under three headings :—(1) Superannuation funds. (2) Sick benefit funds. (3) Workers’ homos. SUPERANNUATION FUNDS. “Is it a fair proposition to employ a man at a bare living wage the whole of his life and to scrap him in his old age when he is unable to earn the minimum wage? If a man is employed at such a wage that he himself is unable to provide for his old age, then it is the moral duty oi an employer to assist that employee to make provision for his old age if it can bo done at little cost to himself. T consider that where firms have sufficient employees to start a superannuation fund, an excellent opportunity is offered. A good basis is by the employee’s contribution being subsidised £ for £ by the employer. It is wonderful what can he accomplished for a few shillings per week put away year after year, accumulating at compound interest. For instance, each Is per week contributed by a male employee starting as late in life as thirty years of age. and retiring at, say. sixty years, such amount being subsidised £ for £ by the employer, and earning 6 per cent interest, provides approximately £39 to £4O per year for life. Thus 2s per week contributed by an employee provides £BO per annum for life. Take the 2s per week contribution a step fuithor and further instances can he calculated. “Further Benefit*-;.—-If a member retires be would withdraw his own con-

tribution without interest. Tf ho died before going out on pension his heirs should get a sum equal to the w hole of his own contributions and the whole of the company’s contributions, without interest. This should be administered at the entire discretion of the trustees. It will be seen that the fund acts as a life insurance until be member leaves the service or retire** on pension. The establishment of a superannuation fund certainly costs money to start if there are many oldish men of long service in the employ of the company at the commencement of the fund. This is the principal difficulty in starting such a fund, and it is a very serious one. but can be overcome by spreading the provision for the older men over a period of years, and by various other methods. After the fund is properly launched and the older men provided lor, then the cost is moderate. Tfc is a scheme that cannot he counted in pounds, shillings and pence. SICK and benefit funds. •• Next I come to the sick and benefit fund. Sickness and the dread of it to the wage-earner is a very real thing. The superannuation fund I class as helping at a moderate 'cost. The sick fund f class as helping at no more cost than at present. Why? The answer is: How much do we. spend per annum on sick pay now? Pay the amount into a sick fund, which will take over all sick risks. ‘“Sick Benefit. The contribution of Is 4d per week at agCft under 24 and Is 6d at 24 and under 29 will provide £3 per week for the first six months’ sickness, with reduced amount thereafter. If the employers paid half, the employee’s portion of the contribution would be reduced to 9d per week. Contributions vai*y on a rising scale according to age. Management fund expenses, say, Id per week per member. “Medical Aid Fund.—The contribution of 6d per week per member (say, employer paying 3d and employe 3d) vA.H provide medical attendance and medicine to members, their wives and families under sixteen years of age. Think what a boon this is to a working man. Then, again, if the Sick and Benefit Society be registered as a Friendlv Society, the wife of a member gets £6 from the Government upon the birth of a child, and this financial aid is of great assistance at such a time. T rom The above it will be seen that from ages under 24 to 40 at date of joining the contribution of Is Id to 2s 8d per ■week (reduced to. say. Is and Is 4d if employer subsidises £ for £) the wage earner is assured of free medical attendance and medicine for himself and family, with sick pay during sickness at the rate oi £3 per week for the first six months, with graduated scale thereafter. This puts the wageearner in quite a different position from that of depending upon an employer’s charity. It places the employee in a position of security, with the knowledge that if he is sick he c-an claim as his own absolute right, substantial weekly cash benefits as well as free medical attendance. Sickness itsel) is bad enough, but when wages stop as well the mental suffering is added to the physical, and is a very real thing, and the patient’s recovery in most cases retarded. In many instances employees in order to earn money to keep the home going return to work before they are able *:o do a proper day’s work, which is bad for both the worker and the employer. WORKERS’ HOMES. “ Now I come to a scheme that costs nothing—that of enabling employees to purchase their own homes. The employer finances the employee—that is, he advances the cash to pay for the house. The employee raises a mortgage from the Government Advances to Settlers Office at 4-J per cent interest, repayable capital and interest over a term of 20 years The employer takes the second mortgage at bank rate, repayable capital and interest over a term of. say. fifteen years. The necessary safeguards can be

inserted in the second mortgage. | sucli as it employee leaves the j service ot employer. Second mortgage j falls due 12 months after date of leav ing. Provided the house is well built, j the weekly payments would be little I more than rent, as the following aver- j age house selected from a list of actual j purchases will illustrate:—Repavment over a term of 20 year*. Cost ’ £OSO. Government mortgage £SOO at 44 per cent. Second mortgage. £l5O, say. at 0 percent. Repayments, Government I9S. company os. equal to 20s per week for 20 years. Now the following illustration will show what Is per week ex tra will do. If. instead of paying os per week off the second mortgage. 6s per week is paid off. the second mort gage will be wiped out in 15 year* instead of in 20 years. Thus:--15s per week of Government mortgage. 6s per week of the second mortgage, and 2s 6d per week rates and insurance ; a total of 23s 6d per week for 15 years and 17s 6d for the next five years, leaves the worker with a house of hm own. Interest at bank rate is charged to the second mortgage. The employer can secure the money from his bankers and lie loses nothing out of pocket, his risk being limited to a., steadily diminishing second mortgage. SUMMARY. “ If by doing all or any one of these things.” Mr Hewlett said in conclusion. *• we can help our employees into becoming owners of their own houses with a guarantee of sick pay and medical attention during sickness, with a retiring allowance when old age comes upon them, we shall have taken a step for ward in the right direction. How many young people to-day are assisting to keep their old parents? Many a man 13 handica.p]>ed and often prevented from marrying because of this. A pension not only assures an employee of an income in bis old age. but relieves bis children of the. handicap of keeping him, thus allowing those children to start life at leapt- from scratch instead of behind scratch. Some people will say. ‘ Oh. ves. this is a very nice humane scheme, and all right whilst you are making money.’ I contend that | leaving the humanitarian element out of the question, it is a sound business investment. You make better and more self-reliant citizens and willing and more contented workers, and although a balance-sheet could not he prepared or a return compiled on a cash basis as to whether or not it was » payable proposition to the employer. I contend tbat.it is sound business. If a man can sav at the end of his life that he hag done his dutv to his sharehoid era and provided them with fair dividends and at the earn© time as he has •succeeded himself he pulled along a few others with him on the road to success and secnHtv. he can feel that he , has done something.’ 0