The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. THURSDAY, JANUARY 22nd., 1925. NATIONAL INSURANCE.

Hokitika Guardian, 22 January 1925, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. THURSDAY, JANUARY 22nd., 1925. NATIONAL INSURANCE.

A Royal Commission appointed by the Commonwealth Government is inquiring into the advisability of a scheme of national insurance against sickness. Often it i.s sickness -which prevents ibe wage earner accumulating sufficient for his old age. [l is not only the cost of the sickness itself, but it is tne less of wages consequent upon absence from work and where the worker has to depend upon casual employment the hardship is the greater as absence during sickness decreases bis knowledge of the likely places where work is to be found. The main provision .gainst sickness to-day to the worker is that afforded by the friendly societies whose members in Australia numbered at tlie end of 1922 in round figures half a million. Statistics, comments a Syd-

ney paper, are not complete a.s to the number of me rulers who receive sw-k pay. but from what statistics there are

it may be stated that the .proportion is one-sixth of the membership and the average sick pay period is nine and a

half weeks per sick member. Tbe breadwinners in Australia may lie put down at two and a. ball' million, and. if tbe same proportion of sickness necessitating sick pay is allowed for in the total as in-tbe members of friendly societies, and the same average number of weeks’ sickness for each Kick breadwinner, as for each sick member of a friendly society, the total sum requisite for payments during sickness if national insurance against sickness were introduced would be very large. One other fact is very noticeable, and that is that- only a small proportion of the, breadwinners are members of friendly societies—about, one-fifth. It was because of the large proportion unprovided for bv this form of ; ickiiess insurance that national insurance was brought, into operation in Germany first and afterwards in Great Britain. Has it paid? That is, lias it improved the health of the, people, their happiness and their character. Upon their reading of that problem as applied to Australian conditions will depend the report of the members of the Commonwealth Commission. Naturally tbe governing bodies of the friendly societies are opposed to the proposal. They foresee a great diminution of their -influence. There cannot he a friendly society movement independent of a natural insurance scheme. The friendly societies would be connected with such a scheme in some way ai d connection with it- would mean a loss of a great deal of their independence; however much the control of the scheme would be camouflaged it would remain in all essentials under Government control. and would be subject to intense bureaucratic influence. That has been tbe experience in Great Britain. Tbe friendly societies engender the best form of voluntary thrift. They mike for the building up of character which means self-reliance. That would be lost under any scheme of national insurance where contributions wore compulsory. There is no such thing as compulsory thrift. Contribution under a national insurance scheme would really be taxation. By no means could it engender thrift, since no effort of mind would be required to make and continue the, payments, .fust as well might the income tax payment be called an exercise of thrift. All the thrifty people, all the self-reliant people are not within the friendly societies. A great many more of this class are outside than Inside the movement, those vho are ineligible for membership. _ rud others who prefer complete individual lives. But of the residue there are a great many breadwinners eligible ier membership who. through lack of purpose in their character neglect to take advantage of the .principle of co-opera-tion upon which the friendly societies work. Ts it worth while discouraging the principle of thrift, the ability to co-operate and the ability fui .-cll-gui-ernmeiit. in order to make the path easier for just as many people who have no calling to thrift and selfreliance.