Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1922-01-02

be said about the classified service, In
that 1t has not yet been classified.
But you shall hear what the civil serv.
ice commission has to say about hir.
Ing help, without comment from me.
There Ia an utter lack OF definitely
planned and well-0rganized employ.
ment policy In the government serv-
Ice.
There Is need for q centralized EN-.
ployment office with Jurisdiction In all
matters relating to employment.
The employment methods Of the gov.
eminent should be such es to serve
for a model for private business.
There Is at present no central con.
troll over the executive service short
Of the President. The President Ia q
busy man and cannot concern himself
with the details Of the executive do.
partments.
The lack Of efficiency in govern.
ment offices has marked effect on
private business.
Definite information concerning the
number Of federal civil employees In
different branches Of the service and
the amount Of the government nav
roll are not readily available.
An official register, or blue book,
Is issued every two years. 1t Is out
Of date long before It Is printed.
A provision Of the civil service rules
theoretically gives the civil service
commission authority to collect and
maintain complete personnel stats.
tics. The labor and expense involved,
however, practically prohibit the col.
lection and compilation of reliable sta
tistical data.
In addition to the limits Of the COM
missions authority Is the absence OF
authority to enforce Its findings. The
commission can make recommends.
tons to the departments and offices
and urge their observance, but IL can.
not enforce them.
Congress passed what is known as
the civil service law January 10 1899
This act created the United States
civil service commission. The law was
Intended to cure In part the evils
traceable to the spoils system. which
grew out Of the four-year-tenure- Of
Office act Of 1920.
During the first 20 years after the
organization Of our government. ad.
ministrative practice with regard to
the civil service seemed to conform
to the intention Of the founders. The
Constitution fixed the term Of no Of
f1cer In the executive branch of the
government except those of the Pres
ident and vice president. 1t was the
established usage during these first
40 years to permit executive officers.
except members Of the cabinet, to hold
office for an unlimited period during
good behavior. The practice was
changed In 1920 by the four-year-ten-
ure act. The spoils system. as 1t was
officially described as early as 1885.
was introduced and extended until 1t
permeated the entire civil service of
the country.
The fundamental purpose Of the CIV
IL service law was to establish, In the
parts of the service covered by its
provisions, merit system whereby
selection for appointment should be
made upon the basis of demonstrated
relative fitness, without regard to DO
litical, religious, or other such con-
siderations.
The act requires that the rules shall
nrnHyfdn IN o.
competitive examinations for testing
the fitness Of applicants for the classl-
fed service, the making OF appoint
ments from among those passing with
highest grades. an appOrtiOnment Of
appointments In the departments at
Washington among the states and ter.
rltOries, period of probation before
absolute appointment and the pro-
hibition Of the use of official authority
to cOerce the political action Of any
person or body,
In 1888, the year IN which the civil
service law was enacted, 1924 posi-
tons In the civil service were made
subject to competition. The entire
huLhDCA VA pNoALAOllS Ah tAiC ACOtIdi
executive civil service on June 20,
1915, was 480,327 At the height CT
the war expansion there were approx
imately 1,000OO0 men and women EN-
ployed In the federal executive civil
service, about 100000 OF whom held
positions subject to competition. On
July 81, 1920, the entire number Of
federal executive civil positions, as
nearly as can be estimated, had been
reduced to 691,116. Approximately
100000 Of these were subject to com.
petition, or, In other words, in the
classified service. The force 10 still
slowly but steadily decreasing.
During the 10 months of our partici-
patton In the war the civil service
commission gave competitive exami.
nations under the civil service law and
rules to slightly less than 100000 per.
sors, and about 100000 persons with
tested qualifications were supplied by
the commission to the service. A nor
NAL years business is about 100000
persons examined and about $4,000
appointed.