The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-06-08
TRANSFORMING EMpLoYEs
National City Bank Of New York
Working Out Scheme


Working Out a Scheme
New York, June 1.-THE officials
of the National City bank are work
ing out plan for the pensioning, az
ter a long service OF It's 45O employees
Although nothing definite has yet
been decided upon II IL said the pro.
posed pension system will not depart
radically from that In force since
January 3 in the First National bank
That institutions pension fund is
partially made up OF voluntary contri.
buttons from employees who wish to
participate at the rate OF 3 per cent
of their salaries. Contributions OF an
unstated amount are also made by
, by the prospective benefciaries in
sustaining the fund Is looked upon as
a valuable feature OF the plan as an
inducement to saving, the total con
tributions of any employe being re-
turned to him should he leave the
banks service before reaching the re-
tirement age.
Pensions and sick benefits have
been in force for a number OF years
on the leading railroads OF the coun-
try, and the United States Steel cor
poration and the International Har-
vester company are two OF the lar
gest OF the industrial corporations
which have elaborate pension and re
lief fund systems. II has been the
practice of the banks and banking
!houses in the financial district to take
care of old and disabled employees
without Formally, but IL is only with
in the last couple of years that reg
ularly established provision for old
age or disabement Of employees has
been put into effect One of the
first of the institutions in the finan-
cial district to take the step was the
Continental Insurance company.
which a year or so ago announced
that it would pay employees % years
in the company's service a pension
upon retirement amounting to / per
cent of his average yearly compensa-
ton for the previous ten years null
tiplied by the number of years of
service There was no age limit fix
ed upon which retirement would be-
come compulsory. as is the case I'm
the First National banks plan, and
the pension granted upon voluntary
retirement is payable for life in
monthly installments.
Under the First National banks
plan retirement at 65 is compulsory
If the employe has at that age com
pleted Is years OF service in the bank
but after Is years OF service any en-
ploye who has been incapacitated
may receive the benefit of a pension
as long as his incapacity lasts. The
rate of payment is per cent of the
average annual salary for the five.
years before retirement, multiplied
by the years of service. but a max
imum of $4,000 is fixed, and no pen
sion may exceed thirty-five-fftieths
of the annual salary. Employees of
% or more years standing receive
| the pension for life but those whose
term of employment is less than 25
years receive payment only for
period equal to the number of years
of service Besides making payment
to the retired employees themselves,
the plan provides also for widows
and orphans of employees serving the
required length of time with the
bank, The widow receives one-half
the amount of the payments to which
her husband would have been EMIT
led, but payment ceases on her re-
marriage. In that case the surviv-
ing children. receive the pension in
equal portions until they reach the
age of 16. The payment to orphans
is also made in the case OF the death
of the widow, but neither the widow
lnor the orphans will receive pay
lments for a longer period than that
to which the employee was entitled
Widows of employees entitled to life
pensions also receive them for life,
but in no case do orphans receive
payments after they have attained l6
lyears.
One of the features of the First
National bank plan is a stipulation
giving the bank the right to cancel
the pension for misconduct" on the
part of the widow or orphans. The
retired employees, too, loses his rights
upon conviction for felony or mlsde-
Imeanor or upon going into bankrupt
cy or taking the benefit of any insol-
vency law. The amount paid into
the fund is returned to any employe
leaving or discharged before reach
ing the age of 65 without interest but
upon the death of a subscribing en-
ploye who has not completed 15years
of service and is, therefore, not en-
titled to a pension, his payments are
returned with per cent interest.
Besides the National City bank sew
eral other institutions in the Wall
street district are considering the
adoption of pension and benefit sys-
tens. The Brooklyn Rapid Transit
company last year put in force a sys-
,n,c;crc f1- lO1o cortyioa opI