8(56
GERMAN EMPIKE
Pauperism.
The general principles as to poor-relief in all the German States, except Bavaria and Alsace-Lorraine, are laid down by the Imperial law of June 6, 1874, amended by the law of March 12, 1894. The territory under this law is divided into local unions {Ortsarmenverhandc) and provincial unions {Landarmcnverbdnde). Usually a local union is a commune {Gemeindc), while a provincial union consists of a large administrative division such as a circle {Kreis), a province, or a whole State. For the purposes of i)oor-relief a settlement is acquired by two years' continuous residence (after the age of 18), by marriage, or by descent. A German in distress must be relieved by the local union in which he becomes destitute, and the cost must be refunded by the local union in which he has a settlement, or by the appropriate pro- vincial union. In communes poor-relief forms part of the ordinary local government business ; in towns the actual administration is carried out by a special committee under the presidency of the burgher-master. Poor rates are usually not levied. In most large towns the Elberfeld system of unpaid district visitors is in force. Statistics of pauperism are not published regu- larly ; the last issue related to the year 1885.
Compulsory Insurance.
As preventive measures under this head must be mentioned the imperial laws introducing the compulsory insurance of workmen against sickness, insurance against accidents by employers, and the insurance of workmen against old age and infirmity.
Under an Imperial law of 1883 and amending Acts (codified in 1912), workmen must 1)6 insured against sickuess, and must tbemselves pay tvvo-tliirds of the contributions, their employers paying one-tliird. For accident insurance, under an Act of 1884 and amending Acts, the contributions are paid entirely by the employers, and they, for mutual protection, have united into associations according to the nature of the industries in which they are engaged. The working of these insurance associations is controlled by Government. For invalidity and old age insurances, under an Act of 1889, amended in 1899, the contributions are paid half by the workmen and half by their employers, while towards each pension the Government grants an annual subsidy of 50 shillings. The em- ployers are responsible both for their own and the workmen's contributions, but the latter may be deducted from wages paid subsequently.
Contributions are paid by the purchase of stamps from the Post Office ; these are affixed by the contributing person to cards on which there are spaces for stanijis for 52 weeks. "\Vhen the contributions are complete, the card is handed in to a specified office and a certificate given in return.
The old age pension is given on the completion of the 70th year of the workman's age, contributions having been paid for 1,200 weeks (eqnal to about 25^ years), a margin of 5 weeks being allowed each year. The amount of wages per annum of each class, the amount of weekly contributions of workman and employer for each class, and the pension for each are in shillings or pence respectively :—
Yearly wages shillings Weekly contrib. pence Yearly pension shillings
Class I.
Class II.
Up
to .350
350-
-550
If
2*
110
140
Class III. I Class IV. l Class V.
550—850 850—1150 | 1150—2000 170 200 23U
Adding the State subsidy of 50 shillings to the pension, we find the total annual sum paid to the pensioner.
The amount expended in compensation (in various foims) in 1910 under the sick insurance law (Act of 1883 and subsequent Acts) was 19,875,000/. ; under the accident insurance law (Act of 1884 and subsequent Acts), 9,995,O0OZ. ; under the invalidity and old age pensions law (Acts of 1889 and 1899), 12,495,00OL ; total, 42,365,600?.
