The New York herald., 1921-12-26
10000 U. S. CLERKS
DUE FOR DISMISSAL
40, 900 in Washington Alone
Probably Will Be Dropped
for Economy.
TRYING TO HANG ON
Many Are in Soft Berths and
Loath to Quit Life Of
the Capital.
TRYING TO HANG ON

Special Dispatch to THE New YORK HnsALp
New York Herald Bureau,
Washington. ID. c., Dec. a5.
This was not q particularly Merry
Christmas for thousands OF Government
clerks in Washington and elsewhere
throughout the country who have been
hanging to war time Jobs by the skin of
their teeth even though the Government
fas no more need FOR their services and
the taxpayers could use the money paid
them in salaries to much better ad-
vantage.
Their spirits were dampened by the an
nouncement from the White House on
Friday that President Harding had
created a Federal personnel board whose
chief duty will be to get rid of surplus
and useless clerks and restore the Gov
ernmental payroll to a pre-war basis
Incidentally the Presidents announce
nent was not cheering Christmas news
to Senators and Representatives and to
Republican party leaders, They are be-
ing beseiged by Government employee
who have doubts about their usefulness
and who hope political influence will
save their Jobs.
Pruning to Go Deep.
If the personnel Of the Government
service Is put back on q pre-war basis,
between 10000 and 10000 clerks the
country over. including about 10000 In
Washington. are to be quietly told to
look elsewhere for work because a needy
Government no longer feels justified In
raying them salaries for performing un-
necessary tasks, or tasks which can be
performed by others who have not
enough to do now.
The number Of employees during the
war jumped from something like 100000
| throughout the country to 10000. The
| number In Washington Jumped from 40,-
| 600 to 117,000. Such pruning as has
been accomplished UP to date has been
| largely that which has been obvious
| the force In Washington now being far
in excess Of the pre-war level, around
| $4,000.
But despite all the talk. the clerks got
the idea that the Government really dio
not intend to do anything but drop
those clerks whose bureaus in the DIFF
ferent departments. many of them born
| with the war, had been put into the dis
card. The Harding announcement.
therefore. that personnel board with =
sweeping program intended to get ac-
| lively at the reduction problem proved
considerable OF a shock. Especially so
at Christmas time, when the clerks--or
|
their funds In the purchase Of gifts.
| Even those clerks who feel reasonably
sure Of holding their jobs. through infiu-
| ence of some member OF Congress or the
| like, are displeased at the new program.
| since It provides for scheme of rating
! the efficiency at intervals of all those who
arc in the Government service. Rec
ords are to be kept and submitted from
| time to time to the United States Civil
vision the Federal personnel board will
operate.
Inemcient to He Dropped.
The real purpose Of this feature OF the
boards operations Is intended to get at
those clerks who have succeeded in pass
| ing the civil service examinations but
have been found wholly unfit to hold the
jobs to which they were assigned. In
the future an accurate check Is to be
kept on the records of all clerks. so
that those who are failures either may
be assigned to duties to which they
might be better fitted or dropped alto
gether from the Government rolls.
The damper on the Christmas spirit
of members Of the Senate and House
came about from the fact that every
one of them will be begged to retain
| some man or woman In the present Gov
ernment Job. Almost every one Of the
| employees who IS to be separated from
the roll will attempt at least to get his
| sponsor at the Capitol to do something
about It." The members of The Senate
and House, particularly the Republicans.
will be hard hit. The Democrats will
have at least one excuse, and that Is
since the opposition party Is in power
| they are not able TO get much in the
way of patronage. However, they Will
promise to d their Best, anl there will
have to be some show Of doing some
thing.
| Women Most Tenacious.
The attitude of some of the Govern
n.ent workers in Washington is regarded
as remarkable. They want to hold on
to their Jobs. which they ob:ained dur
ing the war. This is especially true Of
young women employees WHO are not
particularly happy about the Jobs, as
Jobs, but who want to stay in WASH
| ingtun rather than return TO the family
fold at Waterloo or Sioux City. They
are having fine times In Washington,
away from restraining influences.
The proposal to create a floating
force" OF Government employees, easily
transferred from one department to an
other In times of peak load. is an
other disturbing element to the workers
They look upon such a suggestion as
| one Intended to obtain from them the
greatest possible amount of service, dis
turbing to the routine to which they
have been accustomed.
This, of course, Is not true with all the
Government workers, but Il Is with the
vast majority OF them. Some are willing
tc accept at face value the assurance OF
officials that the new system which Is to
be put into force will give those who dis
play merit an opportunity for career
in the employ Of Uncle Sam.
Saving of e4D0,0oo.oOO q Year.
Figures complied by efficiency experts
say that the cost of the average clerk to
the Government Is around $4,000 a year.
The pay Is about $1,000 in Washington,
but the maintenance OF quarters and
other overhead, including supervision,
the amount OF paper and other supplies
consumed, brings this figure.
On this basis the Government IL II
were possible TO dispose of 10000
clerks. would be able TO save $3.50. 900, 900
a year, which would be very material
item in Federal saving. Whether II will
be possible to go this far depends, OF
course, on the Federal personnel board
and on the result OF the work Of the Con-
gressonal Joint committee now engaged
In rearranging the departments for the
sake Of economy and efficiency.
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