Evening star., 1923-03-04
Senate and House
o. X. Bill Fixing
u. S. Salaries.
MANY PAY BOOSTS
GRANTED WORKERS
Bonus Included in Final
Draft President May
Sign Today.

in standard grades and at salary in
creases absorbing the $240 bonus that
has been paid for the last six years
was taken at midnight last night.
The House. on a division, voted, 21s
TO o, for the adoption OF the con-
ference report on the compromise re-
classification bill.
The Senate adopted the conference
report without debate and without a
roll call. 1t was called up to the
Senate by Senator Sterling. chairman
or the civil service committee, at mid
night. when the message was received
from the House announcing that
body's adoption of the report.
Many to Get Fay Raise.
The reclassif1cation bill carries the
rates of pay contained in the bill as ;t
passed the Senate. These rates, how
ever, will not go into effect until
July I. 1924. In the meantime the
employees covered in the bill will con-
tinue to receive their present basic
pay plus the $24o bonus.
The bill now goes to the President
1t will be signed by him today.
The rates of pay carried in the bill
will result in the employees getting
what they get today including the
bonus and in thousands of cases an
increase in pay.
The galleries in both the Senate
and House were crowded with gov
ernment employees who had been
waiting from five to ten hours to
witness the final passage OF this
measure in which they are go vitality
interested and for which they have
been working for many years.
Vote Taken Promptly.
The conference report was made
to the House by Representative
Lehlbach of New jersey, chairman OF
the House committee on reform in
the civil service. There were imme-
diate cries of Vote" "Vote"'
Representative Thomas i. Blanton
of Texas protested that this was an
important measure involving the ex-
penditure Of many millions Of dol
lars and that members Of the House
were entitled to an explanation or
the bill as 1t now stands before being
called upon to vote.
Representative Lehlbach briefly ex-
planned the changes made in the
measure as 1t previously passed the
House and outlined the bill as agreed
upon in conference. Then the vote
was promptly and dccisively taken.
Clerical Pay Change.
The Redistribution bill, as agreed
to in conference and finally passed by
both houses and sent to the Presi-
dent for approval, contains all the
rates Of compensation provided for
the various grades and services in
the bill as 1t passed the Senate-the
rates in the so-called compromise bill
with one exception. The rates fixed
for grade 5, of the eclerical-mechanica
service were changed to $4,000, S3.-
100, $4,000. $4,000, $4,000. $500 and
$500. In the Senate bill these rates
had ranged from a minimum OF ST.
$40 to a maximum Of $3.50.
In conference, however, all OF the
descriptions of the duties which en-
)
be expected to perform in order to
give them ALLEGATION to those grades.
as provided In the compromise bill
passed by the Senate, were stricken
out. The belief was expressed that
too great latitude would be given the
classifying agency under these pro-
visions, and the House conferees in
sisted upon their elimination.
| The bill, as finally agreed to, pro-
vides that the rates of pay under the
reclassif1cation bill shall not become
effective until July i, 1924. The
present rates of pay plus the $240
bonus will be continued during the
next fiscal year therefore. The Sen
ate bill would have put the new
rates into effect July /, 1923, or as
soon thereafter as possible.
Provides for Board.
, The privisions in the bill directing
the classifying board to study and
report upon the field service. for the
purpose of reclassifying the employees
outside Of the District, are retained.
Also the Senate provision setting
up as the classifying agency a board
! consisting Of a representative OF the
| budget bureau, representatives OF
| the Civil Service Commission and a
representative OF the bureau of eff
| cheney has been retained.
| Language was inserted in the bill
specifically requiring the reclassifi-
| cation board to make use of the
| work of reclassification which has
been done by the bureau OF efficiency
| under tho executive order of October
"a, 1921. Practically all of the Ian
guage Of the Senate compromise bill,
| setting forth what employees are COW
, cred, tho rules governing reolassiri-
cation and ALLEGATION. the powers of
| review by the classifying board, etc,
| have been retained
| The services and grades, as con-
tanned in the Senate bill, are retain
ed The skilled labor service and the
| common and specialized labor eerv
| a., xyar> la n accoyd q pre with