The Washington times., 1901-08-22
BELGIAN
PENSION LII us.

The law governing pensions for aged
workers. which was passed last year by
the Belgian Legislature. has just gone
into force. 1t is an innovation in iegisia-
tive measures and bids fair to be emu
iated by most of the countries OF Europe.
biils being now ready in France and HOl-
land
Without going unnecessarily into COM
plicated details. it may be roughly stated
that the ncw-or rather the improved and
extended-mach.nery for providing Bel
gian workmen with old age pensions
works through three agencies:
First. n State fund tcaisse generate de
retraite SOUS Ia guarantee de retaD. sec
ond. the individual workman with his sub
scription book 0ivreD. and. third. a sort
of ad hoe friendly society societies mu-
tualistes reconnuos par lie gouvernement),
which acts as an Intermediary between
the workman and the State
The societies enroll the workman, collect
his subscriptions and remit them to the
Government fund. The Government reg
isters'' and to some extent controls the
societies and helps them With subsidies
and In other ways. Besides carrying on
known the provisions of the oId-age PEN.
scriptlons, donations. and legacies with a
view to increasing the amount of the PEN
sions for their members
The starting of a society is made as
simple, as easy, and as cheap as possible
There are no stamp duties to pay. Any
half dozen citizens may found one; model
rules have been drawn up. When the'
rules have been adopted. with any neces-
sary notifications. the State supplies
printed copies without charge: it may
even make Il small grant toward prelimii
nary expenses As soon as the State Isl
satisfied that proper rules have beer(
adopted the society Is recognized and
becomes entitled to an annual grant fron4
the State of 2 francs for every uiembe
whose book shows a subscription of MOI
less than francs for the year Th1
grant may either be devoted to the e7
penses OF the society itself or may be use
to assist the individual members in theiI
efforts to acquire a pension.
The amount which the member himse
subscribes is, of course, entered on h
book. To this may be added othe
amounts, e. g., his employer may SUBJ
scribe to his book or the society may add
an annual sum out OF its funds, derived
from subscriptions. donations. legacies. or
from the State capitation grant just men
TONED. For every franc thus subscribed
Cup to a limit of Is francs in any one Year,
the Government adds 60 centimes.
Thus, as NJ. Salaun points out in his
report to the Musee Social OF Paris on the
new law, "a workman who subscribes
francs a year, to which his employer
adds francs, and the society ) francs. or
in all 10 francs, Will receive 8 francs as
premium from the State. There Will
therefore be "a francs entered on his book
scribed." In addition to this the local
government of the province or commune
may make contributions to the members
books through their society, but these
contributions. being themselves public
grants. do not count for the State premi-
UNI, although they help to swell the sum
available for acquiring a pension.
The State continues to add its premium
year by year until the sum entered on
the book is sufficient to buy at cost price
through the caisSe generate an old age
pension of $50 francs, to commence
at sixty-five years of age This is
the minimum contemplated by the law
a pension sufficient to secure bare sub
sistence. But. of course, a workman who
begins young, who is thrifty. who has
a generous employer and belongs to a
good 'mutualite' may go on increasing
his book" long after this point is reach
ed.
1t is not, however. obligatory to spend
the whole of the amount on the book in
buying pension. Part of it may stand
over to be paid to relatives at death, or
the worker may take smaller pension at
55 or 60 instead of a larger one at 70. Spe-
cial provisions are made for the benefit
of those who break down before the PEN
sion age is reached. and a more generous
provision is made for the worker who is
permanently diSa bled by accident at
his work. To workmen who were already
over forty years of age when the act
passed the Government increases its sub
sidy in order to lessen their disadvantages
hut
on condition that they themselves make
a special effort