Evening star., 1920-02-11
"KEYP0S|T|ONS"
GUIDE CLASS|F|ERS
IN SALARY FIXING
Greatest Number in Any
Service Used as Basis in
Rearrangement.

Key positions in the government
service are being used largely in the
determination of salary schedules by the
classification of salaries in the District.
Those who have wondered just exactly
how the commission goes about 1t to
reach the salary schedules for any given
group Of employees at last have infor-
nation on the subject. 1t is being done
by the use of key positions;
A key position" for any given group
Of federal employees is that position
which is regarded as representative, and
from which other positions are graded
up or down.
Practically every one of the more
than fifty Services into which the 1917
600 federal employees in the National
Capital have been divided has its key
! position" it is stated. For instance,
the private is regarded as holding the
! key position in tbs fire service, which
includes the District fire department
Does Not Start at bottom.
The raclassification commission does
not start to fix salaries for employees
at the bottom of a group, neither does
| 1t begin with the head officials 1t
begins as near the middle as possible
1t has been found that practically
every service has the great bulk of
employees holding down practically
the same job. These employees are in
the key position" and it is these en-
ployes who get their salaries fixed first
| of all.
Privates in the fire department get
first CALI of the reclassifers in their
service. Compositors are regarded as
holding the key position" in the
printing service, and their rate of pay
| is being fixed first. In the clerical
and other services there is always a
| mass of employees who are holding
down the positions essential as a base
| for salary determinations.
Avoided Confusion.
1t was early found by the re-
ciassifers that to begin either with
| what are regarded as the lesser po-
| sitions or with the higher positions
would lead to confusion and difficulty
Bile to begin with the employe having
| the least duties and usually the
| smallest number of qualifications, nor
| was it found feasible to begin salary
| determinations with the positions re-
curing the greatest number of quail
| fications and having the greatest
| number of duties attached to it.
Salary figuring from either of these
| bases rapidly showed the commission =
ers that the thing could not be solved
| in that way. The object in salary
| fixing is to arrive at equity between
| L
| are 100 classes in all, these cutting
across departmental lines. The "serv-
ice is the thing, and the service in
| cludeS as many different classes as
may be found necessary to do the
work required in the service.
Arrive ut Solution.
| Solution of the problem. the modus
operandi. came through the use of the
key position This method of sal.
airy determinations allows the mem.
berS of the reclaSSificatiOn commits.
sion to fix first of all the salaries Of
the great bulk of employees in any
one service.
This is job in itself requiring the
highest concentration, backed by al
the acquired knowledge which the
| commissioners have on the rate of pay
of employees doing similar work in va
rious cities of the country outside the
| government service.
But once the key position" for any
| service has been established, as well
| as it is humanity possible to be done
| the commissioners have the great ba Sc
| laid for the determination of the re-
| manning salaries. When the private's
| salary has been laid down. it is not sc
| hard to figure out how much the man
| ought to receive who is helping the
private in some way, and doing proper
| tionately less work of a measurable
| quantity and quality.
On the other hand, with the pri.
| Yates pay settled. it is much easie,
| to say that a lieutenant shall get so.
| and-so salary and a captain shall ge,
| such h-and-such an amount.
| Settling all the key position" sala
ries, which then may be regarded a.
| the key salaries has been found tc
| be a wonderful help on the big jot
| upon which the Redistribution com.
missioners are devoting their every
energy at this time. the determine.
| tion of the salary schedules for the
107, 900 federal employees.