Evening star., 1924-10-12
Real Workers i'm the National Capital

OVID you like to be perma-
IL nent director of personnel
for the worlds largest en-
L i ployer of labor. with 1900
persons now on the pay roll?
How'd you like to certify 1,500, 900
persons for jobs after they had passed
competitive examination? How'd
you like to have a record OF super
VtSlng the examination of 100000
persons. 100000 Of them within an
lS-month period?
John T. Doyle can tell you how 1t
feels. Every single one of these l.
100000 persons who have worked for
Uncle Sam since the Civil Service Sys-
tenn was Set up had to have Mr..
Doyle'S signature on his papers before
appointment. He is the first and only
secretary the United States Civil
Service Commission has ever had. lie
has been working uninterruptedly Tor
the Federal Government for nearly AZ
years.
While more than 80 Civil Service
Commissioners have come and gone,
Doyle has stayed on. Thus he mas
been the one administrative ofhcer
who has made a life-work of develop
ing merit system, replacing the
old spoils system demanded by Sena-
tor Marcy of New York in the classic
phrase ITO the victor belongs the
spoils." He has built up great IN
Stitution under which employer ana
empIoye work on terms OF amlcaple
understanding with the employer get
ting the most efficient services possl-
BILE and the employees secure In their
jobs, with humane treatment and pro-
vision for adequate support when tney
have been worn out in service
* x X
Moro than that Mr. DOyle has dur
ing the last 40 years, worked out
model, constantly improved system OF
employment method, tried out ny the
worlds greatest employer, which mas
been applied to industry generally
throughout the United states. 30
that he has been really running a ou-
Ieau of experimentation and research
for the national employment problem.
For many years he has been chair
man of the committee on standard civil
Service law for States and cities and
secretary and treasurer of the National
Assembly of Civil Service Commissions
He has given of his own vacation
periods in helping the large cities OF
the country to set up their merit sys-
tenhs. For example, he spent SIX
weeks with the Chicago commission
some 80 years ago and a similar pc
riod with the Kansas City commission
some 20 years ago.
Thus he co-operateS with and is
consulting authority for some 800 civil
Service Commissions, covering 10 State
services and the rest municipal or
ganizations. The State commissions
deal largely with employees in eie-
mosenary institutions and the city
commissions with firemen and police
men, and those in the educational
service.
=
Just consider that the Federal Gov
ernment is "A vast business organiza-
ton, and that the Civil Service Com
mission is charged with the duty and
responsibility of providing the work
ing personnel required in the conduct
of it's multifarious operations, from
watchmen to scientists, technologists
or important administrative officers.
b The Civil Service has more than one
thousand different kinds of tests, COW
ering practically all of the occupations
in the outside world--from timber
scaler to snake catcher to sugar sam
pier to orthopedic nickel platter to
pigeon expert to inspector of hats to
ceramic engineer to nematologiSt.
Its curriculum is wider than in any
university. 1t is constantly on the
lookout for men and women Of every
conceivable attainment. Particularly
was this true during the war period,
when the commission had a list of such
occupational positions covering 22 pages
of fine print Each new invention. such
as radio, opens UP new field for en-
ployment with Uncle Sam, who has to
watch developments.
So the routine work Of the COM
mission embraces examination and
certification for appointment to nearly
half a million positions. In perform
ing this duty the commission has no
favor to bestow and no patronage TO
dispense. From its very inception
Mr. Doyle has been the certifSa tion