Evening star., 1922-12-05
APPEALSFOR HELP
FOR U. S. EMPLOYEES
Compensation Commissioner
Protests Ruling on Those
0ccupationaIIy III.

The plight Of government employees
! afflicted by occupational diseases in
the service of their country, who now
are denied federal compensation
under an Interpretation of the COM
pensation act by Controller General
McCarl. has been officially brought
to the attention of President Hard
ing by Mrs. Bessie p. Brueggeman.
chairman of the United States en-
pioycs compensation commission.
Mrs. Brueggeman expects to have Il
personal conference with the chief
executive over the matter.
Under the ruling of September 20
by the controller general the COM
for only those government employees
who could prove an actual injury.
pointing specifically to the year.
month. day and hour when, and the
particular locality where, the injury
occurred"
| Calls Ruling Narrow.
Mrs. Brueggeman and the commits
! sion have been so surprised at the
ruling of the controller general.
! and marrow in its Interpretation:
that the matter has been appealed
directly to President Harding.
/ Meantime more than 200 employees
! of the class Disseminated against by
F.; Controller McCarl in his decision
tuberculars. those suffering by lead
poison, etc.-who have been for some
| time on the compensation list of the
commissio are still being continued
! in their original status. The commits
sion. Mrs, Brueggeman says. feels
that it would be so unjust and
cruel to evict these sufferers from
, the institutions where they have
heretofore been cared for by the gov
ernment that for the present they
are being continued on the compen-
Sation list.
! No New Cases Received.
| No new cases of occupational disease.
! however. arc being received by the COM
F., mission. it was explained. and large
, numbers Of employees who "therwis..
would have received the benefits of
government aid are now being turned
away.
The ruling of the controller general.
Mrs. Brueggeman says, has placed the
| federal compensation act far behind
| the compensation acts of some Of the
states. particularly Massachusetts and
California. 1t would not be the intent
of Congress. in the opinion of the COM
federal workers in a much more mar
row" and 'reactionary' way than have
| progressive states of the Union.
Cared for Heretofore.
Heretofore the commission has been
caring for employees of the government
who have lost their health through oc-
cupational diseases working for the
United States. and in cases where the
commission has had the recommends
ti"ns of reputable physicians that such
employees lost their health and conse-
quently their wages as a direct result
of their environment and the conditions
of their employment.
When the controller disaliowed a
group of vouchers from the commission
for care of such patients. amounting to
s6.510.o5. the commission was placed
in the position of having illegally eX-
pended this money. What the attitude
of President Harding will be in the
matter Mrs. Brueggerlan was not pre-
pared to say. The President had in
dicated he would confer with her at
his earliest convenience.
Not only civil service employees but
all civil employees OF the government
throughout the country. including the
thousands in Washington. are concerned
in the ruling, it was said.