Reduction of Salaries and Bonuses.

The Education Board, in the early part of the year, proposed to make considerable reductions in teachers' salaries by the abolition or reduction of bonuses.

The Committee of Management drew up a report on the working and incidence of the bonus system and sent it to the Board for their consideration. The report referred to is printed as an appendix to this report. As a result of their deliberations the Board, while disavowing any intention of reducing teachers' salaries, resolved to alter the system by cutting off the bonuses from all teachers below Division II. of their class, and by reducing the amount of the remaining bonuses by one-fourth. Considering that the reductions have very seriously affected many teachers whose salaries were already small, the Committee hope that the Board will make some arrangement whereby those salaries will not be permanently reduced.

The extent of reduction in the smaller salaries by the abolition of bonuses is shown approximately by the following figures:—Four teachers lose £30 each; six teachers lose £20 each; sixty-seven teachers lose £10 each Almost all the salaries affected as above are under £200 per annum.

The Committee of Management hope that teachers who are interested in this matter will make a point of attending the Annual Meeting, when this matter will be discussed.

In connection with these financial arrangements, the Committee cannot overlook the fact that whilst teachers' salaries have been considerably reduced during recent years, it has at the same time been deemed advisable to increase the salary of some of the Board's officers.

The Committee do not call attention to this fact in any spirit of dissatisfaction with the increase itself. The Institute, however, is of opinion that any policy of increase or retrenchment should be made to apply to every branch of the service.