The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-07-23
Frederic Haskin's Letter
Hunaanizing the Postal Service.

Washington, d. c., July $500.
after viii H. Hays. late chairman
Of the Republican National commit
tee, took charge of the postsffics
department in the administration d
President Harding he attracted
country wide attention BY deeiarins
that the postal service must g
humanized. He said that the &c.,
900 employees OF the postoffiee de,
partment were not to be regaraee
as commodities. but that they should
be made partners in the conducl
Of the business; that having tia
brain and the hand to do the jei
well, they would be given the hear
also with which to carry on
To prove that he was not utter.
ing empty words, Mr.. Hayes has
gone into the thing thoroughly, and
still is hard at work at the bust
ness of hunaniEing the service
which he heads. He is trying to
see all of the postal employees it IS
possible for him to meet. He has
Talked to 1000 of them in Wash
ington, and in New York and Chi
cago to about $4,000 more. He IN
vited to Washington TO confer with
him the heads of the seven postal
workers organizations. Postmas-
tiers and division superintendents of
the railway mail service have been
called here that their views might
be ascertained.
The next step was a gathering OF
tie heads of the groups of en-
ployes and all of the officials Of
the postoffice department, and at
this conference every side of every
question affecting the service and
the men and women responsible for
1t was gone into. What is regarded
as the capstone of the humanizing
effort was put on when Mr.. Hays
authorized postmasters to consult
with clerks and carriers or other
postal workers on matters affecting
them and the service. Mr.. Hays
confidently looks for a steady i'm
provement in the mail service as a
result of this system, and that is
where the public will get its re-
ward.
Mr.. Hays travels through the
days brought him in touch with
many big private commercial en-
terprises and in their plants ne
came in contact with the systems
of welfare work they have found it
desirable to install and build up.
II private business could benefit
from such systems, the new post
master general saw no reason why
the postal service could not benefit
as well, AMI it would follow that
any IMPROVEMENT of the postal ser
vice would Immediately benefit ey-
cry client of the postoffices, which
means practically everybody in the
United States.
Postal Welfare Work.
Mr.. Hays accordingly secured the
services of DR.. Les X. Ffankel, vice
president of the Metropolitan Life
Insurance company, known far and
wide as the head of the welfare
and policy holders OF that com
pany. DR.. Frankel is serving the
postoffice department for an in
definite period without pay.
Another step taken by Mr.. Hays
in following out his system is \
change in the seniority rights Of
postal employees who have resign
ed and reen.ered the service. II was
formerly the practice to put them
back at the foot of the list. Now
and hereafter they may again be-
come postal employees just one
grade below that held when they
resigned.
Mr.. Hays found many instances,
too, where the retirement law work
ed injustices to employees and hurt
the service as well The arbitrary
retirement of clerk whose mental
and physical faculties are unimpair-
ed did not please the new boss Of
the posteffice department. He put
Tito effect a policy of continuing
for two-year periods. those who
were fit and restored several who
had been arbitrarily retired.
70 carry the humaniZing effort
outside the exact confines of the
service and make it apply directly
to the public, the postmaster gen.
eral has asked postmasters every
where to take an active interest in
commercial clubs, chambers OF
commerce, boards of trade, aad SIM