New Britain herald., 1928-12-15
THE OBSERVER. Makes Random Observations
 On the City ano Its People

l1eeeeeeee>eeee>seeeee>>ee Nightmare Season Begins
 for Cotnmitteo On salaries
 Comes the time of the year when salary committee members spend sleepless nights and wish they were appointed to the railroad committee. which meets about twice a year. tn- stead of the group which must listen to the arguments advanced in behalf of 200 or more city employees and then say either "yes" or mo"
 At Wednesday nights meeting of the common council all on the muni- cipal payroll who are hopeful of having their pay jeacked up. must have . petition before the aldermen and the councilmen. More than 100 men and women are concegned in the applications already placed on file and there will be a great many more to be referred to the commit tee on salaries Wednesday night.
 Although those whose requests will be denied may be of opposite mind. the gentlemen who compose the sal ary committee must be given the benefit of all doubt as to what mo- tivates their action. They will be ac- cused of favoritism and of having po- litical grievances to settle. but 1t must be remembered that 1t is far easier to make increases than 1t ts to turn down the applications of men and women and it probably requires less courage to take the former step.
 The annual adjustment of salaries brings to the foreground the numer- ous questions of governmental pro- cedure. the two most important of which have to do with the problem of which the several agencies in the organization of government Is best fitted to cope with salary adjusting. and just what are the respective ob- legations of commissions and the sal- ary committee.
 Several years ago there was an unsuccessful attempt to have salary adjusting taken entirely out of the hands of the council and given to an appointive commission or the board of finance and taxation. The move had strong backing, but there were sufficient numbers of common council members who saw no im- provement in prospect or too little to bother with. The argument was made that the salary committee com- pletely ignores the question until the month of December when, in a few nights, it attempts to arrive at what compensation is due several hundred employees whom they seldom, if ever. saw at work, and about whose duties they have none but the most meager information. This was answered with the claim that the system is not at fault. and that a similar condition might arise with reference to sal ary commission, with the additional objection that those men, being ap- pointive officials and not directly an- swerable to the electorate, would have no check whatsoever.
 Salary committees in the past have complained that commissioners do not give the council group the cooperation that should be given, and that recommendations for in- creases are often made when the commissions do not believe they should be granted. but that the buck is passed" to the common
 tot thereby clearing the commissioner and placing the blame on the coun- cillors.
 Some of the commissioners have made the reply. excepting in cases where it is clearly evident that no more compensation that is allowed should be paid, the petition should be forwarded to the council. By charter grant. the council is consti- tuted as the salary agency, a power that 1t jealously guards, this being indicated by their unwillingness to continue q system which gives it on- ly the right to accept or reject rec concentrations of boards with re- spect 10 salaries.
 City employees are aware of this condition and prefer 10 rest their case in the hands of the council. frequently complaining that boards are overstepping their bounds when they block salary increase petitions. giving them no opportunity 10 be heard before the council committee. That the commissioners are happy to follow this line of reasoning is showE by the fact that, to date. there has not been a petition turned down 1 for higher wages being allowed 10 go to the council with their request.