Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-07-17
CABINET To DECIDE
. AS TO RETIREMENT
| Of ABLE EMPLOYEES
Department Heads Asked by
President to Fix Policy
for All Offices.

Application of the retirement law to
government employees over the retire
ment age, but still able to perform
their duties. is being held in allegiance
until the cabinet meeting next Tues
day. at the suggestion of President
Wilson, it was learned today.
The President at the last cabinet
meeting asked the several department
heads, only four of whom were pres
ent, to agree on some policy that could
be applied alike to all government Of
fees, and it is understood that the
chief executive is in favor of liberal
application of the paragraph providing
for the retention of men and women
past the retirement age, where the
chief of their bureau is willing to Ger.
tify that they are able to perform their
duties.
In Sympathy With Report.
|, While President Wilson has not
stated his position on the application
of the law. he is known to be in full
sympathy with the report made public
recently by Secretary John Barton
Payne, of the Interior Department
which held that each individual case
of an employe wishing to be retained
age should be decided on its merits,
with the good Of the service as the
paramount object sought. The report
was submitted to the secretary by a
special committee of executives of the
Interior Department.
Any ruling that men and women
must be retired when they reached
the age of sixty-ive or seventy years,
according to their classification, would
meet with the unqualified disapproval
of President Wilson, and no orders
from department heads or subordin-
ates to that effect will stand until
the matter has been threshed out be-
fore the cabinet.
Order in T.. o. Department.
Postmaster General Burleson issued
the following order today:
1.-The Postmaster General directs that
each bureau chief. superintendent of
division and heads of independent
offices of the postal establishment
shall prepare and place upon the Post
master Generals desk all applications
of superannuates for continuance in
Office with such recommendations
thereon that each may see fit to make
in order that the Postmaster General
may act upon said applications in ac-
cordance with the provisions of the
retirement act set forth in section 6
thereof. These applications to be on
the desk of the Postmaster General
not lated than 4:30 pm. Monday. the
18th day of July
Opposed to Best Interests.
Many impressive cases of men and
women who have reached the age of
seventy. but who are in gooI physical
and mental condition have been
brought to the attention of the Presi-
dent, and he is understood to hold
that their compulsory retirement now
not only would work a hardship to
the employe, but would be opposed
to the best interests of the service.
Particularly is this true in the pen
sion office, where there are a number
of employees old enough to retire, but
who are doing highly specialized work
that could not be expedited if all
past seventy years were to leave at
once.
In the interest of economy it is
further held that it is poor policy to
compel an efficient worker to retire
and draw his allowance, and, at the
same time, pay full wages to some
one else to do the work.
The retirement law will become ef-
fective on July 30. but before that
time it is expected that, either by
executive order or by agreement of
the department heads. a uniform pol
icy for dealing with such cases will
have been adopted.