Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-04-09
JOBS GO BEGGING
NCITY SERVIY
Department Heads Com.
plain That $19,OOOOOO
Payroll Is Inadequate
CAN'T GET GOOD MEN
Political Expediency Phi.
BLUNT Tools" and Sinecuro
Seekers Where Workers
Are Needed

The municipal government as
time employer Of all classes OF wo,L...
is facing difficulties that prove its a.,
100000 personal service item lnadoon.,
as a drawing card in many branob,.
face of the fact that much work bss
stopped by Government edIct dsnssa
ment heads and bureau chiefs cop,D,.,'
daily OF the character Of helm tbat ~
pay forces on them. ~
with some of the high-salaried -,
ttons filled with officials whose drr-
are of such "A character that politIcai -
pediency demands that the incumh.s,.
be selected because of their resldencs 4.
certain Of the forty-eight wards Il.
claim is made by one bureau chief a..
patronage is spread too thin" to nr.s'
an inducement to efficient workers
Useless places" are being retaip,,
despite the shortage of real work s.s
tho payroll is kept filled to Capacitv w,.
men who apparently prefer soft snar,s
under the city to making good I'm priv,.
lines of business life. The mamno,s
payroll prevents increasing of indlyldua
salaries or the pay of any one got !,
men to a point where efficient worksr,
will be attracted.
Never was this condition mora sor.t
bly, illustrated than at recent exan,r,
tions held by tho Civil Service Con.
mission. The increased pay grant.a
hoscmen and officers Of the Bureau y
Fire has proved only small inducemeS,
for the right kind of men for this s4rv.
ice Examinations are being held ever
few weeks for hosemen, with the resos
that, with tho physical Requirement,
greatly curtailcd, only comparatysh
few men are seeking places In the sery.
ice. designations to take up better psit
places and to enter Government seryIes
are more frequent than ever before.
The same condition exists in the Ri
reau of Police Patrolmen have Oh
tanned their increase of from S325 "a
S3.5O day and yet II is with the great.
est difficulty that Director Wilson, Of
the Department of Public Safety, can
keep up his force to anything like 4
numerical efficiency basis.
Examinations for all classes of cleri.
cal positions and even for office boy
have failed to result in eligible lists d,
more than a very few names, and IN
some instances only one or two appl.
Cants nave presented themselves to taks
the tests for the lower paid places
The pay Of little fellows" has been
, increased uniformity during the last year
| but the increases have failed to max,
/ city Service attractive when It Is under.
stood that It carries with II voluntary
| contributions to the Republican CITY
/ Committee and to ward political organ.
/ izatiOns as well.
BLUNT tools" is the characterizatloH
given by one department head to Ii.
workers handed to him since the open
| ming of the war, and blunt tools, Il (
| admitted will continue so long as thl
/ pay roll Is top heavy with political sR
/ pointees holding down the best-payins
/ places.
The dropping of 500 loan ulons,
engineers" because of the stoppage d
most municipal undertakings will hayl
no appreciable effect on salary trouba
as the regular payroll will be just a
wen filled at the end of the exodus and
no more revenue will be available 10
| the salary items. War conditions and
| increased pay outside of municipal serv
ice together with more independenc
politically are the reasons given by De
partmental heads for the gradual chang
that the personnel of municipal worker
I is undergoing