Evening star., 1920-02-09
BONUS BRINGS Up
SALARY PROBLEM
CIassifiers in Doubt What
to Consider Basic
Wage.

The part the present bonus of S240
will play in the final wage decision
for the 10000 federal employees of
the government here is problem
facing the joint congressional COM
mission on reclassification of salaries
in the District
Shall the wage schedules for the
LOO classes into which the employees
are divided under reclasSification be
made on the base of the present sal
aries minus the bonus. or on the ba Sc
OF the present statutory salary. plus
the bonus?
There is no doubt that the aver
age government employe here regards
the bonus which he is receiving as an
integral part of his salary. If there
was any disposition at first on the
part of employees to look upon the
simple. from Uncle Sam. that atti-
tude has vanished largely.
Statements Mt Hearings.
At hearings before the reclassifica-
ton commission last November and
December. the various groups of fed
eral employees presented figures to
show that even with the bonus they
are largely underpaid.
Now the question confronting the re-
classification commission. in it's final
decisions as to wage schedules, upon
which it is engaged at this time, has
much to do with the present bonus
being given the federal clerks and
other workers. This question is en-
tirely separate and different from that
involved in the consideration of the
suggestion made that basic salaries
be established. with a bonus to vary
year by year, according to the cost
of living.
The pressing problem of the bonus
is whether to consider the employees
present salaries as simply the statu-
tory salaries or the salary plus the
bonus. If clerk is down on Uncle
Sans wage book for $1,000. is it fair.
in discussing his salary. to say that
he is drawing $1,000 only. when. as a
matter of fact, he is drawing sI44o?
Opinions on subject Vary.
Divergence of opinion upon this
question has arisen in more than one
quarter. This note of different start
ing points has been struck many times
in the halls of Congress.
What is the salary of such-and-
such a clerk?" one congressman asks.
Twelve hundred dollars a year,
comes the answer.
asked.
"Oh. no. comes the reply.
Then his salary is S1,440,'' is the
answer.
And "Oh. no." or "Oh. yes" is the
forthcoming answer. according to the
viewpoint of the ansWerer.
In the considerations of the re-
classification commission some such
dialogue as the above has come up,
with the result that a general consid-
GRAFTON of the problem involved arose.
Clerks interests Involved.
1t will make some difference to the
government employees, it is believed.
which base is taken to work from in
setting up the final salary schedules
to be presented to Congress next
March.
Stress is to be placed, however, on
the idea that perhaps no great final
difference will result no matter which
base is taken. If the statutory salary
merely is taken as a base, it is gener-
ally believed that a higher increase
of salaries will have to be given than
if the present salary plus it's present
bonus is taken as the base. The final
result. in both cases, would be ap-
proXimate.
1t is generally believed among the
clerks themselves that if the salary
plus the bonus is taken as the base,
they will fare better in the end than
If the other base is used.