f. Rank and Fringe Benefits for Teachers

On October 3, 1890, two laws having to do with the fringe benefits for teachers were promulgated. These were the Law concerning City, Town, and Village Elementary Shoot Teachers' Retirement Pay and Survivors' Benefits and the Law concerning Prefectural Normal School Principals' Regular Salaries and Prefectural Normal School and Local Public Middle School Teachers' Retirement Pay and Survivors' Benefits. Most articles of these Laws came into force on April 1, 1893 (and the other articles on April 1, 1892). Together with making prefectural normal school principals' regular salaries a burden of the National Treasury, detailed specifications for the payment of prefectural normal school and local public middle school teachers' retirement pay and survivors' benefits for those with no less than fifteen years' service (and also for others with less years' service in special cases) were specified. On June 30, 1891, the June, 1891 Order concerning the Names and Treatment of City, Town, and Village Elementary School Principals and Teachers was promulgated. On November 17 of that same year, this Order was replaced by a new Order of the same title, and according to the new Order, city, town, and village elementary school principals and full teachers were treated the same as the lowest rank civil officers (han'nin bunkan).

In November, 1891, Regulations concerning the Appointment, Dismissal, and Other Treatment of Status of Elementary School Principals and Teachers were issued along with Regulations concerning the Duties and Discipline of Elementary School Principals and Teachers and Regulations concerning Disciplinary Action against City, Town, and Village Elementary School Principals and Teachers, and Suspension from Duty and License Revocation for Private Elementary School Principals and Teachers. On December 21, 1893, the Order on the Appointment of City, Town, and Village Elementary School Teachers was promulgated.

Concerning the political activities of local public school teachers, instructions were issued in October, 1893, which stated, "In the case of groups with the name of educational society (kyoikukai), membership of school teachers in such groups will not be permitted as go beyond the bounds of purely educational affairs and debate matters of educational policy or other political matters or publish newspapers or magazines concerning political issues and thus as recognized as those who engage in political debate." These instructions were abolished in October, 1897, but at the same time another instructions were issued which stated that "a strict control ought to be kept concerning educational administration and supervision." In August, 1898, when various instructions were abolished by Minister of Education Ozaki Yukio (1859-1954), the above October, 1897 instructions and instructions issued for the same purpose in February, 1898, were also abolished.

On March 24, 1896, the Law for Subsidizing City, Town and Village Elementary School Teachers' Long Service Increments from the National Treasury was promulgated, which came into force on October 1 of that year, and on October 20, 1899, the Law for Subsidizing Elementary School Expenses from the National Treasury was promulgated to be enforced on April 1, 1900. But the latter never came into force, for both of these Laws were abolished on April 1, 1900, with the enforcement of the Law for Subsidizing City, Town, and Village Elementary School Expenses from the National Treasury promulgated on March 16 of that year. This new Law stated that city, town, and village elementary school teachers' long service increments and city, town, and village ordinary elementary school teachers' special increments should be subsidized from the National Treasury. On April 1, 1918, with the enforcement of the 1918 Law concerning the National Treasury's Share of City, Town, and Village Compulsory Education Expenses promulgated on March 27 of that year, the National Treasury assumed the burden for paying a part of the regular salaries of city, town, and village ordinary elementary school full and associate teachers.

Concerning the treatment of local public specialized school, vocational specialized school, normal school, middle school, girls' high school, and vocational school teachers, the fundamental regulations were formed with the promulgation on March 28, 1903, of the Order on Local Public School Personnel Regular Salaries, which came into force on April 1 of that year, and with the promulgation on January 29, 1917, of the Order on the Local Public School Personnel System and the Order on the Treatment of Local Public School Personnel according to the Comparable Civil Service Ranks, both of which came into force on February 1 of that year. Meanwhile, on January 27, 1915, the Order on Local Public School Personnel Status was promulgated, providing for the first time guarantees of status to these local public school employees.