Evening star., 1917-01-22
Head of Federal Employees
Union Submits Brief to
Lawmakers.
REVIEWS ARGUMENTS
MADE FOR EMPLOYEES
Suggests Tax on Idle Coal and Oil
Lands as Means of Rails
ing Revenue.

In final attempt to convince mem
bers of the Senate of the urgent need
of increasing the salaries If govern
! ment employees in accordance with the
and 10 per cent allowances made by
the House in the Legislative. executive
and judicial appropriation bill. H. NJ
McLarin. president of the Federal EN-
ployes' Union, today submitted to each
member of the Senate letter and q
| brief outlining arguments for the in
creases.
After pointing out the increases in
the cost of living, without accompany
ing increases in salaries over a long
period of years. the report calls to the
! attention of the Senate statements in
the annual reports of cabinet officers
pointing to the need of increases, and
to addresses Of other officials of the
government, as well as to statements
before the committees handling the ap-
preparation bills of officials from all
branches of the government
Star Articles Cited,
The greater part of the brief is given
over to articles published in The Star
dealing with the government employees
and their salaries, and containing state
ments which the employees representa-
tives believe should convince the senators
of the imperative need Of increases for
the government employees.
Secretary Redfield of the Department OF
Commerce, the brief says. has given
| more consideration to the existing condi-
| tion than any other government Official
Statements contained in his annual report
dealing with the need for increased sala-
ries for employees, and an interview on the
question printed exclusively In The
Star. is quoted in full.
IAN attempt has been made" says the
brief, ito compare the salaries paid by
the government to the salaries paid by
commercial and industrial concerns. IT IL
submitted that the entrance salaries paid
by the United States are ordinarily higher
than the entrance salaries paid by private
employers. Notwithstanding this fact the
| civil service commission reports that the
delays due to the declinations Of positions
at the entrance salaries Of 5000 a year
seriously interfere with the work OF the
departments, and considerably increase
the difficulties experienced by the COM
mission in supplying qualified persons for
appointment.
Commission Urges Increase.
"The commission strongly recommends
an increase Of entrance salary from $500
to 81, 900 per year. The Secretary of Com
merce in his annual report states that the
service is embarrassed at times by the
number of declinations Of appointments
received and resigna tions in the lower
grade positions
Any attempt to compare the salaries
paid in the government service to the
salaries paid by private concerns
snould be predicated on a consideration
of the fact that employees enterting the
gov ernment service must pass rigid
examination. The statement of those
who say that they could fill the posi-
tions in the government service many
times over with applicants from their
own states. do not take this fact into
consideration. The applications which
are made to members of Congress for
positions in the government service are
for the most part from those who are
unable to pass satisfactory examina-
tions. There should be considered also
in such a comparison the fact that
promotion in the commercial world is
a great deal more rapid than 1t 10 In
the government service.
Get What Congress Gives Them.
"A clerk entering the government
service is practically bound to serve
for the first half-dozen years at a
a
This is because the positions in the
81, 200 grade constitute about so per
cent of all the positions in the clerical
grades of the government service. In
private employment a man or woman
receives what they earn. In the gov
ernment service they receive what Con-
gress provides for them, and this with
out any recognition of unusual abili-
ties
1itao 10 hA
creases to employees in private estab-
Iishments, the brief says further:
The prosperity throughout the United
States is unprecedented Salaries and
wages have been increased to an ex-
tent never before possible. The profits
being made by manufacturing concerns.
as well as by farmers and other pro-
ducers. warrant these increases Tne
cost of the necessaries of life to the
employees have required that these in
creases be granted.
should the government employe be
the only group of citizens in the United
States who will not share IN the pre-
vailing prosperity!
Scouts Treasury Bogey.
The condition of the Treasury OF the
United States has been given as the
reason for the opposition to the desired
increases in salaries for the govern
ment employees. 1t is our understand
ing that provisions have already been
made in pending revenue bills. and by
issuance of bonds, to care for the deficit
in the Treasury. Sufficient revenue can
be raised from country as
is the United States to
cover the amount required for increases
in pay of government employees.
The deficit in the Treasury of the
United States is due very largely to
the preparedness program. The public
OF this country has shown conclusively
that it believes in and wishes thorough
This being true, il neces-
sarily follows that this same public
would not object TO paying the bills for
the preparedness program They surely
cannot expect TO have a sufficient army
and navy to cope with the European
countries under the same revenue sys-
tenn which was designed for an army
and navy 33 Ia per cent smaller than
the ones now in contemplation
The government employees feel that
hey are being unduly taxed by this
refusal to grant increases
N salaries on account of the prepared
1ess program. They are required not
)nly to pay their share of the taxes.
put must suffer in addition thereto the
reduction in income consequent ON in