The San Francisco call., 1898-04-11
ARTICLE XIII.
CIVIL SERVICE.

l.
 CIVIL SERVICE.
 SECTION l. Immediately upon the taking effect of this Charter the Mayor shall appoint three persons, known by him to be devoted to the principles of Civil Service reform, who shall consti- tute the Civil Service Commission, one for one year, one for two years, and one for three years. Each year thereafter the Mayor shall in like manner ap- point one person as the successor of the Commissioner whose term of office eX- pires in that year, to serve as such Commissioner for three years. All ap- pointments shall be so made that not more than one Commissioner shall at any time belong to the same political party. Each of such Commissioners shall receive an annual salary of twelve hundred dollars.
 Sec. 2. The Commissioners shall classify all the places of employment in or under the offices and departments of the City and County mentioned in sec tion eleven of this Article, with refer ence to the examinations hereinafter provided for. The places so classified by the Commissioners shall constitute the classified civil service of the City and County, and no appointment to any such place shall be made except ac- cording to the rules hereinafter men, toned.
 Sec. 8. The Commissioners shall make rules to carry out the purposes of this Article, and for examinations, appointments, promotions and re- movalS, and in accordance with its pro- visions may from time to time, make changes in the existing rules. All rules and all changes therein shall be forth with printed for distribution by the Commissioners.
 Sec. 4 All applicants for places in the classified civil service shall be Sub- jected to examination, which shall be public, competitive and free. Such ex- aminations shall be practical in their character, and shall relate to those matters only which will fairly test the relative capacity of the persons ex- amined to discharge the duties of the positions to which they seek to be ap- pointed and shall include, when ap- propriate, tests of physical qualifica- tions, health, and of manual or pro- fessional skill
 Sec. D. The selection of laborers shall be governed by priority of appli- cation only. No question in any ex- animation shall relate to political or re- ligious opinions or affiliations. The Commissioners shall control all ex- aminations, and may, whenever an ex- animation is to take place, designate a SultaDle nuIllDeT Ol peESOHS, ellltI III OI not in the official service of the City and County, to be examiners; and, if in the official service, it. shall be part of their official duty, without extra compensation, to conduct such ex- aminations as the Commissioners may direct, and to make return and report thereof to the Commissioners. The Commissioners may substitute any other person, whether in or not in such in lected, or may themselves act as such examiners.
 Sec 6, Notice of the time, place and general scope of every examination shall be given by the Commissioners by publication for two weeks preceding such examination in the official news paper, and such notice shall also be i posted by the Commissioners in con- 1 spicuous place in their office for two weeks before such examination. Such ! further notice of examination shall be 1 given as they may prescribe.
 1 Sec. '. From the returns of the ex- 1 aminers or from the examinations made by the Commissioners. the Com l missioners shall prepare register foI l each grade or class of positions in the 1 classified service of the City and ] County of the persons whose general | average standing upon examination foI such grade or class is not less than the minimum fixed by the rules Of the Commissioners, and who are otherwise eligible. Such persons shall take rank upon the register as candidates in the order of their relative excellence, as 1 determined by examination, without 1 reference to priority of time of ex- animation.
 ! Sec. s. The Commissioners shall pro- vide for promotion in the claSsifled ser vice on the basis of ascertained merl' and seniority in service and standing upon examination, and shall provide, II all cases where practicable, that vacan. cies shall be filled by promotion. Al examinations for promotion shall bt competitive among such members ol the next lower rank established by the Commissioners for each department a: desire to submit themselves to such eX aminatioHs The Commissioners shal submit to the appointing power the
 names of not more than three appli
 cants having the highest rating fol each promotion. The method of exam ming. and the rules governing the same ! and the method of certifying, shall b'
 the same. as near as may be, as pro
 vided for applicants for original ap
 pointmentS.
 Sec. g. The head of the departmeu
 or office, in which a position classified
 under this Article is to be filled, shal
 notify the Commissioners of that fact and the Commissioners shall then certi fly to the appointing officer the nam'
 and address of one or more candidates
 not exceeding three, standing highes
 upon the register for the class or grad
 to which the position belongs; but la borers shall be taken according to thei
 priority of application. In making sucl
 certification sex shall be disregarded
 except when some statute, the rules O
 the Commissioners, or the appointing power specifies sex.
 Sec 10. The appointing officer shal
 notify the Commissioners of each posi- tion to be filled separately, and shal fill such place by the appointment O
 one of the persons certified to him b. the Commissioners therefor. Such ap
 pointment shall be on probation for ;
 period to be fixed by the rules of th Commissioners; but such rules shal
 not fix such period at exceeding si'
 months. The Commissioners may strik
 off names of candidates from the regis
 ter after they have remained thereon
 more than two years. At or before tn
 expiration of the period of probation
 the head of the department or office il
 which a candidate is employed, may
 by and with the consent of the Com
 missioners, discharge him upon assign
 ing in writing his reason therefor t r1, h. ;c fhn,