Evening star., 1923-03-11
Cooperation in Redistribution.

The announcement that the Person
intent of Congress rather than the
errors that crept into the classification
law that tend to lower the salaries of
the custodial service is reassuring. Its
call for cooperation and assistance
from the administrative officers, and
its invitation OF constructive Sugges-
tions in matters Of procedure, not only
from persons inside the government
service, but from the public, are all
evidences that the board is dosirous of
administering the law III a broad and
liberal spirit, so that it will be at once
fair to the government and TO the en-
ployes.
1t has already been pointed out that
the classification act is firmly based
Oh the report Of the joint congress
sional commission on reclassification.
The records of that commission will
naturally be taken over and used by
the board. It is recalled that one of
the means employed by the commits
sion TO secure the opinions Of the en-
ployeS was the organization Of repre-
sentative committees from the various
services or workers in a given profes-
sion or occupation in the government
service. Such committees could easily
be revived by the board and invited to
submit recommenda ations that should
represent their groups. Tentative al
locations might also be submitted to
such group committees for their COM
ments. No single step that the new
board could take would do more to re-
assure and give confidence than the
adoption Of Il plan that would permit
such participation in the work that
vitally affects the livelihood Of those
participating.
The Star also repeats its suggestions
that the board secure expert advice
from the outside, from the officers of
the great national professional and
scientific associations, from the expert
personnel officers of great corporations
and from the privately financed or
ganizations, national in scope, devoted
to problems of personnel administra-
tion. The use OF some or all Of such
agencies might well be availed Of. in
order to do job that will command
confidence.
Inasmuch as the Personnel Classifi-
cation Board by it's announcement and
invitation is evidently wisely desirous
Of winning and holding the fullest
public confidence, The Star would sug-
sest a further announcement that. If
it can be truthfully made, would tend
to create a feeling OF security in the
minds of the government workers. The
first news of the boards plans after
the act was signed seemed to indicate
that the ALLEGATIONS already made to
the Bureau Of Efficiency classification
would be followed-that the fate Of the
government employees in Washington
had already been fixed. The intent Of
the law is clear that heads OF depart
ments shall allocate all positions to
their appropriate grades in the COM
pensation schedules, and that this shall
10 done in the case OF the original
classifying process. The law does. it is
true, direct the board to follow las
nearly as practicable" the classifica-
tion made under the executive order of
October "a. 1921, but this cannot be
taken as meaning that the issue is al
ready closed. A specific announcement
by the Personnel Classification Board
that the case for the ALLEGATION Of the
employees in the District is still open
would be reassuring.