The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-03-15

A tlon Professor Conan is now in Europe studying governmental pensions and so- sial insurance).
 Exclusive Service The Survey Press Bureau)
 The first application on national scale of government aid to voluntary insurance against unemployment was undertaken by the new kingdom of Norway. The year 1914 had brought serious industrial depression to Scandinavia, and the des- perate endeavors to meet the necessities of the men thrown out of work led to the appointment of a commission. It's recommendations form the basis of the law passed by the Storthing in 1906. Norwegian Plan
 The object of the law was to encourage and develop the efforts toward self-in- surance already in operation among the principal trade unions. The statute pro- vided that the state and the communes concerned reimburse one-fourth of all benefits paid from unemployment funds organized in accordance with certain pre- scriptions. Only such employment funds are recognized as derive at least hall their resources from members dues, and their treasuries must be independent of trade union funds and devoted exclusively to the care of unemployed members. It was recognized from the beginning that without the momentum of labor or ganization, there was little hope of enlist ing wage-earners in the task of self-in- surance But the nonunion men were 1ia tO ment, and the legislators felt that they
 must be provided for. The lay stipulated therefore that recognized fund.- must admit to membership any man or woman exercising the trade in question whether ! or no he was affiliated with the corre- spending trade union.
 1 During the six years operation of the act, but one nonunion man has applied ] for membership in an unemployment fund.
 There are 75,000 unorganized laborers in 1 Norway, unskilled men for the most part. and with this one exception, they are as
 yet uninsured against unemployment. l Benefits
 As to the terms on which benefits may | be paid the law provides that the unem- ployment must be involuntary. 1. e., Il must not have been caused by strike or lockout or by drunkenness or bad temper. I
 nearest employment agency without being able to find suitable work, and he may not be in receipt of aid from any other fund. No benefit is granted until a man has paid dues for 26 weeks and never l within the first three days after he has l announced himself out of work, and not for more than 90 days in any one year. On these terms it is possible to make an
 average membership due of seven krone CS1.SO) per year, cover the normal amount | of unemployment with an allowance oi half the daily wage.
 In 1912 9O09 were paid out in benefits,
 of which the government paid s9,S03.oS. | The number of men belonging to the rec 1 ognized unemployment funds amounts to 27,00O, only one-half of the total number l of union men in Norway. It is probable | that the present industrial situation dis | courages thrift. Norway is very prosper l ous and labor much in demand, so that unemployment Is not a live issue. Profes- l sor Rygg of the University of Christiania, | in his report to the recent congress on un- | employment, makes clear the necessity of l a campaign of education among the labor l ing classes by way of preparation for the next period of depression.
 The Norwegian system seems we'll l adapted to national conditions, but it has l entirely failed to reach the weaker un- ions and the unorganized men. A project
 for revision is now being discussed which
 may render insurance against unemploy-
 ment obligatory for the seasonal trades. The Danish law of 1907 also utilzes or
 ganized labor to promote this most diffi- cult form of insurance The trade unions had, indeed, done much already In the l nine years between 1899 and 1907, the or sanized trades of Denmark spent $S07 6S6, | in unemployment benefits, and they lent
 all their influence in support of the bill Inff fnr,t, rtn%~
 52 trade unions. practically all the feder- | ated trades, have established unemploy- | ment funds in accordance with the terms | of the law, and Ill ,0O0 union men are thus l insured.
 In Denmark
 The Danish law differs from the Nor wegian in few points. The state offers a subvention to recognized unemployment funds amounting to one-third the pre-
 miums paid by the members. The com l munes are urged to pay an addition of
 one-sixth to the sums contributed by per-
 sons residing within their limits. The l advantage of estimating the government l contribution according to premiums paid
 rather than to benefits paid lies in the
 possibility of accumuIating reserve
 fund in good times against the years of | depression.
 Denmark has been peculiarly fortunate
 in the personnel of her state bureau of in l spection. Tn. Sorensen the inspector gen. l eral enjoys the full confidence of the | trade union men. He annually convenes 1 the officials responsible for the employ ment funds for conference and advice, | and this personal contact obviates many
 misunderstanding Six representatives
 of unemployment officials, together with
 the inspector general, make up the coun-
 ell of unemployment, and in this body l all questions of policy are threshed out The section of the law which provides
 that "a recognized unemployment fund may not give aid to persons engaged in a
 strike or to persons unemployed because l of a lockout'' was discussed at length. with view to the interpretation of
 doubtful cases. For example, men thrown
 cut of work because of strike for which
 they are in no way responsible and men
 who at the close of strike or lockout
 are not able to return to their former employment are entitled to benefits; on
 the other hand, strikers moving about ir
 search of work are not entitled to travel ing benefits.
 Workers Insured
 | Fully 111.000 perCons and 60 per cent of | the workmen in Denmark are now in-
 sured. (The proportion Is 73 per cent of the men insurable and 38 per cent of the
 insurable women) Practically all the in- dustrial iaborers who are unionists and socialists to a man, are insured under the act. The men not covered by state aided insurance are government employees
 lon railroads. in postoffices. etc.) who arc