VALUE OF PRIVATE PENSION FUNDS. 357 



The reproach has been made to this arrangement 

 that it binds the workman too much to the particular 

 workshop, because by his leaving it he loses the 

 advantages gained. This is quite true, although the 

 hardship is considerably mitigated by the circumstance 

 that with dismissal for want of work every dismissed, 

 workman receives a paper, giving him a preferential 

 claim to re-admission over other workmen. Certainly the 

 workman's freedom to strike is considerably restricted 

 by the conditions regarding pensions, for on his vo- 

 luntarily leaving his old age claims lapse by the rules. 

 It is however to the interest of both parties that a 

 permanent working staff should be formed, for only 

 thereby is the firm enabled to maintain the workmen 

 even in unfavourable times and to pay them wages 

 affording subsistence. Every large factory ought to 

 form such a pension -fund, to which the workmen 

 contribute nothing, but which they themselves manage, 

 of course under the control of the firm. In this 

 manner the strike mania, which seriously injures in- 

 dustry and especially the workmen themselves, is best 

 coped with. 



It is certainly somewhat hard that the provisions 

 of the Workmen's Old Age Insurance. Law of Ger- 

 many have no regard to the already existing or 

 prospective private pension funds, and thus oblige 

 the particular factories to pay double for pensioning 

 their workmen. However the peaceful relations between 

 employers and employees, which are secured by the 

 private pension fund, as well as a permanent staff of 



