CASES OF ILLNESS CAUSING LOSS OF EARNINGS AND DAYS LOST BY MEMBERS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN MUTUAL BENEFIT SOCIETY DURING THE YEARS 1890, 1891, AND 1894 TO 1900, BY BRANCH OF SERVICE AND YEAR-Concluded. PENSIONS.-The total number of current pensions of the mutual benefit societies are shown as far as data are available in the following table. The average pension from 1901 to 1907 is seen to be only $81.71, and in the earlier years even smaller. In judging of the amount it is necessary to point out that the averages were materially influenced by the very small widows' and orphans' pensions. As has already been explained, the mutual benefit societies did not grant any new pensions to widows and orphans from 1891 to 1904, inclusive, and the current pensions had been granted by the Alta Italia Railroad Mutual Benefit Society prior to the reorganization in June, 1890. These pensions were exceedingly small, averaging usually $18 for widows and $7 per annum for orphans. The number of these pensions was rapidly declining, the widows' and orphans' pensions granted since 1905 being much larger, though not any too large, even considering the Italian standard of living. Another considerable class of very small pensions is found in those granted to the "aggregate' members, in order to increase their pensions received from the pension funds to 365 lire ($70.45). All these factors influence the average amount of the pensions paid by the mutual benefit societies. The average pension of a member within recent years was over $90, and in the Mediterranean fund over $100. The seeming drop in 1907 is due to the fact that the "supplementary" pensions of "aggregate" members are not stated separately, but together with the pensions of the "ordinary" members, which decreases the average. NUMBER AND AVERAGE OF PENSIONS PAID BY THE MUTUAL BENEFIT SOCIETIES IN SPECIFIED YEARS, BY SOCIETY AND YEAR. [Source: The annual reports of the society.] Society and year. Adriatic society: Num- Aver- Num- Aver- Num- Aver- Num- Aver- Num- Aver- 1890.. 1891. 1892. 1901. 1902. 1903. 1904. 1905. 1906. 1907. 1891. 1,535 83 129 13 493 18 11 67777777 3108660032 1,903 2,168 2,248 2,365 2,406 2,455 1,996 97 205 13 334 18 2,538 c First six months. a Including pensions to "aggregate" members. Included in pensions to "ordinary" members. d Last six months; united society. Finally, it must be pointed out that women (in the service of maintenance of way) constituted a certain proportion of the pensioners because in the Alta Italia Railroad Mutual Benefit Society women were granted pensions until after the reorganization of 1890, since which they received lump-sum benefits only. These pensions to women, which were proportionate to their salaries, were very small and influenced the average for the pensioners. For some years the pensioners could be separated by sexes, and the pensions for each sex are shown in the following table: NUMBER AND AVERAGE OF PENSIONS PAID TO "ORDINARY" MEMBERS OF THE ADRIATIC MUTUAL BENEFIT SOCIETY, 1893 TO 1903, AND OF THE MEDITERRANEAN MUTUAL BENEFIT SOCIETY, 1891 TO 1906, BY SEX. In view of the great differences in salaries a better understanding of the pensions granted by the mutual benefit societies is obtained by studying them by separate branches of the service. The following table shows the number, amount, and average of pensions granted each year by the Adriatic Mutual Benefit Society from 1890 to 1903, and by the Mediterranean Mutual Benefit Society from 1890 to 1901, by the main groups of railroad employees. The number of pensions granted to employees in the first, second, and fifth groups (engineers and firemen, trainmen, and office employees) were so small that it was not thought necessary to show them separately. No invalidity pensions were granted to the female employees, as the constitution provided only for lump-sum benefits. The pensions appear to have been larger in the Mediterranean society, due to higher wages paid by the Mediterranean Railroad. In both societies a tendency to smaller pensions is noticeable, though the fluctuations from year to year are considerable. is The comparison between the various occupational groups particularly important. The shop employees receive larger pensions than either the employees in the maintenance-of-way class or in the station service. This is partly due to higher wages and partly, probably, to longer service. NUMBER AND AVERAGE OF PENSIONS GRANTED EACH YEAR BY THE ADRIATIC MUTUAL BENEFIT SOCIETY, 1890 TO 1903, AND BY THE MEDITERRANEAN MUTUAL BENEFIT SOCIETY, 1890 TO 1901, BY BRANCHES OF THE SERVICE. LUMP-SUM BENEFITS.-In case of retirement because of disability before fifteen years of membership, the employee received only a lump-sum payment, as explained above, depending upon his length of membership, with a minimum of two months' pay. The female employees, all belonging to the maintenance-of-way service, received only such lump-sum benefits. As the following table shows, these lump-sum benefits were very small, especially so in the case of the female employees. But these latter constituted by far the greater part of all persons receiving such lump-sum benefits, very few of the other groups retiring before the necessary fifteen years have elapsed. The average sum paid to the female employees varied in the different years from $17 to $32. In other branches of service these amounts were larger; and the largest lump-sum benefits, as well as the largest pensions (outside of the few office employees), were paid to the shop workers. NUMBER AND AVERAGE OF LUMP-SUM RETIREMENT BENEFITS PAID TO MEMBERS Adriatic society: 1890.. Num- Aver- Num- Aver-Num- A ver- Num- A ver- Num- A ver- Num- Averber. age. ber. age. ber. age. ber. age. age. ber. age. ber. 6 5 133 10 14 12 9 10 11 14 29 20 25 20 17 101 76 As explained in the analysis of the constitution, the mutual benefit societies, in distinction from the pension funds, did not pay any pensions to dependent families of deceased members until after 1905. Instead a lump-sum benefit was granted in such cases, as explained in a preceding paragraph. The number and average amounts of such death benefits are shown for the two largest societies and for the same periods to which the previous tables refer and separately for the larger three occupational groups. No such benefits were given to families of deceased female members, and only a few to the members of the higher wage groups who were rapidly being transferred to the pension funds, and therefore showed lower death rates. The average amounts of such benefits were somewhat higher than the average annual amounts of pensions. They did not represent an amount sufficient to insure economic security of the family for any length of time, but represent a sufficiently high amount to tide. the family over the immediate difficulties accompanying the death of the father. |