Evening star., 1925-01-17

Continued from First Psge.)
regarding them by some administrator
/ or some representative of the Bureau
OF Efficiency.
joint Appeal Denied.
MANY OF them knew nothing re-
Earding their ALLEGATIONS until thes"
ALLEGATIONS We're finally announced
Then they had the opportunity in
dividually, each by himself TO appeal.
No provision was made to enable the
employe to join with others in his
class TO make a common appeal as
matter that affected equally all in the
same class. No arrangement was
made so that the employe could learn
readily how others like himself were
classified in other departments, so
that he could tell by comparison
whether his treatment was fair and
uniform or whether he was the victim
&C discrimination and inequality
The board never made any ade-
quate provision for receiving and
hearing appeals. 1t did not recognize
them as device for bringing about
sound, equitable classification. In
fact, the charge is made that threats
were used to prevent them. In one
instance where employees doing like
work were placed in three different
gr Ldes, the board refused to correct
the ALLEGATIONS and the employees
started mandamus proceedings. The
rumor is that they withdrew this
suit because they were told thai If
they won and the court ruled that all
had TO be placed in the same grade,
the board would put them all in the
lowest grade.
I'm the face OF conditions like this
in the administration of the Classi-
fication act, 1t is no wonder that
members constantly received com
plants of favoritism and dlscrimin-
alton.
Says Fundamentals Ignored.
Under the dominance of the
United States Bureau of Efficiency
and the force behind II, the Person
mel Board has refused to apply the
fundamental idea of the classification
act Standardization through a CEN
trail executive control of administra-
tive officers in matters relating to
salaries
THE theory the Bureau of Eff
fciency has seen fit to substitute for
the act adopted by Congress is that
administrators should be free to run
their Offices as they will, subject only
to such control as Congress may it
self exercise without the aid of any
central controlling agency. Expert
ence demonstrates that this theory
leads 10 gross abuse.
Free from real control. many ad-
ministrators run wild. They boost
their own salaries They boost the
salaries of their immediate adminis-
trative assistants. Their favorites
get salary advances. The money
granted by Congress for deserving
hard working subordinates may be
dissipated by administrators in ad-
vancing the salaries of their own
crowd.
In the absence of a central execu-
tive agency even unselhsh, impartial
administrators are unable to accom-
plish the three great objects of salary
Standardization: Cd Pay related TO
duties and responsibilities. (2) pay
fair alike 10 the employee and the
taxpayer, go equal pay for equal
work under like conditions regardless
of the department in which the en-
ploye is engaged Freedom from
any uniform or general salary re-
strictions and the differences in the
principles and Views Of different ad-
ministrators are the very forces
which brought about the conditions
that made the reclassifcation act
necessary.
Congress recognized these facts
when it passed the classification act
and set UP the classification board as
the central agency to exert the neces-
sary control and to bring about
equity and uniformity.
Says Congress FIaunted.
The board, as we all know. has
failed to function as a real board.
The repres sentative of the Bureau Of
EFFICIENCY, with colossal conceit and
amazing effrontery, has Haunted the
obvious intent of Congress. BY de-
viOus devices he has created a situa-
tion whereby the representative of the
Bureau of the Budget is in a vital
matter deprived of his freedom in
voting in the light of his own con-
victions, and is forced to subscribe TO
a program which he himself does not
indorse.
This House, through it's committee
on the civil service, has investigated
this matter thoroughly. The commit
tee submitted a unanimous report in
favor of the bill TO abolish the Per-
sonnel Classification Board and trans
fer its functions to the Civil Service
Commission. After debate this bill
passed by an overwhelming ma
jority. 1t has been reported out
unanimously by the Senate committee