The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-02-08
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORM ALTON
BURE AU
FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Director.
Washingtoa. D. c.
FINDING JOBS FOR PROBES
SIGNALS
Washington. D. C.

SIONAlS.
Washington, d. c., Feb. 4.-Scien-
tifica1ly classifying executives, profess
sional and highly trained men of all
sorts, and placing them where they
are needed in the Industrial machinery
of the nation. is the task of new
branch of the United States employ
ment service, known as professional
and special section.
The public is so used to associating
employment agencies with those oc-
equations known collectively as ia
bor," that the idea of such a bureau
devoted TO the interests of engineers.
lawyers and statesmen is hardly re-
garded by it as practicable. But the
return of the soldiers from the front
has demonstrated that a professional
man of large calibre can be out of
job and seriously embarrassed by the
fact just as well as bricklayer or
hod-carrler. And this new service is
further demonstrating that profess
sional men can be sorted and dis
tributed just as well as mechanics and
carpenters. For it has already placed
thousands of men, and the character
of thse applicants is shown by the fact
that the average salary received is
over three thousand dollars.
This work has never before been at
tempted on such scale by any or
ganization, public or private. Hereto
fore, when the head of a big electrical
plant needed an electrical engineer he
may have made inquiries of some en-
cheering college, but in all proba bility
he just asked around among his
friends and business acquaintance I'M
til he found someone who would do
The man who needed a lumber expert
or shop foreman was in the same posi-
ton. Often the right man met the
job, but more often they missed each
other. They will now be properly in
troduced by the professional section of
the employment service.
The returning soldiers and officers
have a broader outlook on life than
they had before the war. They are
more ambitious. A prominent public
utility official in Philadelphia states
that about so per cent of the men re-
turning from the service have glori-
work they want to do. OF course, it
takes more than "glorified" notions to
fit a man for technical lines of work
but it is here that the professional
section does its most valuable work
A man who had been employed as a
messenger in a bank in Pittsburgh gave
up his $95 a month and entered the
service. He displayed unusual initia-
tive and executive ability and before
the signing of the armistice had risen
to the rank of captain. He~flas been
receiving a good salary and has felt
the responsibility of management. 1t.
is natural to expect that he will not re-
turn to the position of bank messen-
ger Nor should he. He will be more
| valuable to the community and to
himself in some other capacity. He
will need expert advice in regard to
the vocation for which he is best
suited.
And for this advice the returned Of
ficer or soldier should turn to the pro-
fessiona1 and special section of the
employment service Highly trained
business men, vocational experts and
practical engineers, who have studied
the problem of placing men of their
| own kind, are included in the person.
mel of this section. Two zone offices
| have been established. one at 16 East
42nd street, New York City, and one
| at East Adams street, Chicago, ILL.,.
which will clear between states those
| opportunities which cannot be cared
| for by the state organizations. The
| federal director of the employment
| service in each state will establish a
| department to handle this work. Spe-
ciaI representatives of the section will
be located in the larger cities to carry
| on local work.
The work OF this new section has
| been heartily endorsed by the fou.
| large engineering echani-
cal, civil, electrical and mining. Co.
operating in this work also are many
| other national professio AL organiZa-
tons, technical colleges, the American
Federation of Labor, Rotary Clubs of
America and the Chamber of Com
merce of the United States.
| While the professional section is
new, the methods it is putting into
practice are tried ones. 1t was IN the
work of the public service reserve
| that this section first tried out it's abi1-
| tiles When the war came to Amer
| lea the government called on the pub
| lie service reserve for engineers and
| professional men. In. finding the right
! men for the jobs, the officials of the
organization developed a new plan of
| classification, analysis and indexing
| 1t is this plan which is now being
| used in the zone offices of the prof s.
sional section. 1t is rapidly being ex-
tended to every state office. It affords
an almost automatic system of &C.
| curate placement, and insures the fit
ting Of the applicant to the oppor-
| tunity. When an applicant presents
himself to one of the branch offices,
| ne is given a rating This rating is
worked out scientifically from the an
swers filed in on a comprehensive
| QUESTIONABLE. His index card will
then give a composite picture of his
qualifications.
1T is this mental snap shot
which guides the professional section
in linking the man to the opportunity
| When a call for a man of certain
training and ability is received, the ex-
| aminer turns to the card index and
| picks out those whose qualifications
seem best to comply with the request.
| The employer is then given the OPP
portunity to pick the man he prefers
from among those eligibles. In look
| ing over these index cards one is
struck by the fact that the first and
most important item given is tn :
training ane fitness of the individual
for certain work. His name seems to
be of the least importance.
In connection with this work spe-
clal branch has been stabliShed for
the registration and placement of
teachers. There will eventually be
four zone offices for teachers, but at