The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1897-02-20
STATE ACCIDENT INSURANCE
THE GERMAN SYSTEM OUTLINED
SOME FINE BUILDINGS.

Institution-Interesting Features.
There is a fine building on the model
of a F'lorentine palace overlooking the
canal in Konigin Augusta Stiasse.
Berlin is composed of these piles of Of
fetal masonry. After few hours
spent In wandering through miles of
embassies, palaces, Parliament houses,
war offices, ministries and courts of
justice, your eye takes in new buildings
OF this character with a certain weari-
ness. But the office in Konigin Angus
la Strasse possesses certain features
which make you look a second time.
The wrought iron work of the gates is
rich and magnificent, and inside the
entrance hall two statues, neither uni
formed or frock-coated, catch the eye
the figures of young man and an old
one, in their working clothes, with the
signs of their craft, 1t is the imperial
insurance office-Reichs-V ersiCherunG
samt--the center of the German. system
of old age, sickness and accident iQsa-
rance. AS you mount the stairs you
catch sight of quadrangle, iianked by
brick buildings and occupied by the
staff of the office.
Let me explain the functions of this
great institution. So far as the accl-
dent insurance scheme is concerned,
the intervention Of the state is neon
siderable, The right of the workman
to an allowance for all Industrial acct
dents is established by law. The state
makes no grant whatever toward the
expenses of compensation, the burden
being borne by the employers insu-
rance groups-Ber sgenossenschaften
who carry out the insurance and pen
sion work. with some aid from the post
office. OF the details of their system,
more anon. The imperial office sees
that the employers groups are finan-
cially sound, and supplies court to
hear the cases of appeal from the arb
tration boards. These boards are local
and take the place of the civil law
courts They are constituted of two
employers, two workmen, and lnagis-
trate, or some other functionary APP
pointed by the imperial office. Their
entire cost is borne by the trade groups,
and it costs the workman nothing to
conduct his case, The court Of appeal
lis constituted in the same way. eNcert
that a member of the imperial insu-
rance board presldes. The state, of
course, pays all the expenses of the
central office. The whole system, in
fact gives a happy combination Of in
{stitutions. The workman's freedom is
| absolutely untouched. Individually and
through his trade union his status is
what it was before, while his position
on the imperial and local boards gives
him large voice in settling the princi-
pies OF compensation. The only bur,lnn
cast upon him is that the sick society,
TO which he contributes two-thirds and
the employers one third has to look af-
ter the injured during the first thirteen
weeks at its own charges From the
beginning of the fifth week, however,
the sick pay is raised, at the cost of the
employer to at least two-thirds of the
mars standard wages. And this srs-
TEN ~ coming on the sick fund is heiDs
modified in the workman's favor. as We
I shall see. The worknan's contribution
thus mad to the aggregate accident
fund is e.even per cent.
| At tae tnp OF the broad flight of stairs
We come to The door of a magnificent
| and stately conference room which
| reads YOU by an ante-chamber into the
| PRESIDENTS room. DR.. Bodker. who
has engineered this mighty scheme of
industrial justice from the first. is a
gray-llaired, alert man with a powerful
Volce ara the eager manner of an en-
thuslast, but he conveys an impression
CT reserve force and determination be-
hinu ms pleasant exterior NY sole
claini to an audience was my desire To
place the facts about the German svs-
tenn before the readers Of the Daily
Chronicle, but this was quite enough ia
secure cordial welcome from the nres-
/ ident
| nave come to learn, DIR. Rodiker" T
began, so you must excuse me If NV
4 ignorance seems very gross. The fact
is there is a prejudice against your svs-
tenn in England. Complaint is made
that the principle of insurance makes
the employer and the workman careless
/ 80 AN~oNt'' " Gil llltlSttSe OF accidents
| Your own statistics, DR.. Bodiker ara
| turned against you by the friend. of
the workman. See how the accidents
nave increased, they say
We'll, and suppose they had in
creased somewhat, would that he so
surprising?o said the president. 81
maintain, mind you, that accidents
have not increased, but the factors for
producing them. 1t is the machines
that make the accidents that have
multiplied and they are multiplying ev-
cry day Then there is greater haste
and pressure. The iron works 60 on
working through the night"
Yes I said, II passed through mile
after mile of them last night in West
! phalia."
you may see the builders, too. in
Berlin" he continued, working all
night by electric light This cannot be
done without risk. And I beg of Won
to remember this point also, that the
rapid growth of machine industry has
attracted year by year great numbers
/ of inexperienced workmen, who are of
course much more liable to accident
than trained men. You must not lose
sight of this. During the last fen
years-that is to say, during the peri
cd In which our system has been on
| tria1-o1r' ind11ctriaS hauo baa,,