The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1906-12-31
WILL HURT The EFFICIENCY
FAILURE TO RAISE WAGES or
PoSToFFICE EMPLOYEES,


Hitchcock--New Legislation to Make
the Service More Attractive In Order
to Retain Present Employees.
Washington, Dec. S0-Failure at this
time to increase materially the com
pensation Of postoff1ce employees thus
keeping pace with the advancing
wages in other lines of employment,
will seriously jeopardize the efficien-
cy of the service. This statement is
taken from the annual report of F4rst
Assistant Postmaster General Hitch
cock, made public to-day. The need
of new legislation to make the service
more attractive in order to retain
present employees and as an induce
ment for good men to enter the SER
vice is treated extensively by Mr..
Hitchcock, who presents plan for the
consideration of congress-
Higher wages in other classes Of en-
plcyment taken with the increased cost
of living have rendered pronounced the
lnadequacy of postofilce salaries. AS a,
result the designations from the ser
vice has increased at an alarming
rate, and the standard of men going
into the service has greatly deterio-
rated In the last fiscal year. Mr.
Hltchcocks report shows that in arst
and second class Offices there were ap-
proximately 10000 clerks in the grades
ranging from $500 to $1,000, and of
these clerks 2,340 or about 1913 per cent
resigned during the year. OF $4,000
letter carriers attached to these offices
COL, or about rs per cent voluntarily
left the service.
Statistics for the quarter ended Sep
tember 30 last and for the month Of
October are even more striking. Dur
ing the quarter 929 clerks and 205 car
rlers resigned, while incomplete re-
turns for October showed the resigna-
ton of S56 clerks and 81 carriers. From
1913 per cent for the fiscal year the
annual rate of resignation on the part
of clerks advanced to 1875 per cent. for
the quarter ended September 30, and
to 2O.S per cent. for the month of oc-
tober In the case of carriers the an
nGal rate of resignation, which was 2.6
for the gscal year, rose to S.5 for the
quarter and to Al per cent. for Oeto-
her.
The figures for october show that
clerks are leaving the service at an an
nual rate of one in every five.
After q careful study of the nroblem
of devislng a scale of salaries applic-
! able to clerks and carriers alike this
plan has been suggested by Mr. Hitch
cock! Establishing for both of these
classes of employees six grades uf COM
pensation, the annual salary to be $500
for the initial grade, $500 for the sec
ond grade and for the four succeeding
grades $500, $1,000 $1,1OO and $1,000, re-
spectively; and of providing for the
advancement of clerks and carriers in
| first class offices from the $500 initial
grade TO $500 after one years service,
to 5000 after two years service and to
| 81 900 after three years service. and
for the advancement of clerks and car
! rl6FS III lH6 SeCUuu Nlds OlllCS 10 SouU
after one year ervice and to 5000 after
! two years service.
The proposed plan leaves to the de-
partment the distribution of promo
tons. based on efficiency, above the
s., 900 grade in the first class Offices
and above the 5000 grade in second
class offices, the extent of such promo
tions being limited, of course, by the
appropriations provided. The several
grades ranging from 5000 and $1,000 to
81, 200 will not only make it possible to
reward exceptionally faithful and eff
cient men throughout the clerical and
carrier services, but they will enable
the department to raise the standard
of remuneration when demanded by
local conditions.