In England Canon Iffackley first initiated the movement for old age pensions, but the name of Charles Booth is chiefly associated with its later development. He advocates granting pensions without regard to age or desert. Several re ports of committees of Parliament (notably 1891, 1899) cover the ground extensively. Some trade unions provide pensions.
In 1898 New Zealand passed a pension law granting £18 yearly to citizens of twenty-tive residence who were sixty-five years of age. Deductions are made when there are other sources of income, so that the stigma of poverty is at tached to the scheme.
In the United States there has been no exten sive demand for the adoption of the system the Government, although it has long existed in embryo in the practice of retiring on half pay certain officials, who have served a given num ber of years or have attained a certain age. There is also a marked tendency among railroads and other large corporations to pension their aged employees. The Chicago and Northwestern Railroad on Deeemlwr 12, 1900, adopted a plan which is being followed by other roads. The pen sions are managed by a hoard of four officials. and all employees may enjoy them. .Men seventy years old who have been thirty years in ser vice are retired; those from sixty to sixty-nine who have served thirty years and are incapaci tated may be retired at the discretion of the board. The pension amounts to 1 per cent. of the average monthly payment, for the ten years preceding retirement, for each year of service.
The Pennsylvania, Illinois Central. Cnion Pacific, Philadelphia and Reading,, and the Grand Trunk have recently adopted pension systems. Among street railways, the AIM rohmlitan. New York (July 1, 1903), provides for the retirement. vol untary and involuntary, of men between sixty five and seventy-five years of age after a service of twenty-five years. For a continuous service of twenty-five years the pension amounts to 25 per cent. of a workman's salary. and increases with length of service. A number of gas com panies have pensioned their aged employees. notably the Consolidated Gas Company of New York City, and the (ins Company of „rand Rap ids. :Melt Andrew Carnegie has provided for the pensioning of employees at the Pittsburg mills. The Standard Oil Company has adopted a plan which provides for the pensioning of every official, no matter what his rank, the pen sion to be 25 per cent. of his salary. See FRIENDLY Soett:Tr.
1;1111,10(atA Pll Y. Conrail, Ilandir6rterbeeli der nschafti n. art. ung" 1S98): Willoughby. ll'orkingnan's cc New York, 1398). For ?erman condit ions. eon-I lt Fourth Spe(-ial Report of of Labor (Washington, 1S93); for foreign elnintries in general. Thirty-first Annual 1:( port of Now 3" or 1; 11 u reit u of Sta tistics of Labor (Albany. 1900). Consult also: Spendi•r. TIo• State and Pensions in Old ge (London. 1692) ; Reports of English Parliamen tary Committces, 1591, 1699.