Evening star., 1930-12-07

Reputation.

The House in passing the Treasury
and Post ONCE appropriation bill yes
terday adopted the Wood amendment
which denies to employees of the Gov
srnment increases in their salaries
during the fiscal year ending June 80,
1882, which under existing law might
be granted for maintenance of salts
factory standard of work. It further
denied to those employees of the Gov
eminent "in the field" meaning out
side the District Of Columbia, certain
adjustments in salary to make them
correspond to the rates paid for similar
service In the District of Columbia.
The Congress, If it finally puts
through the appropriation bill with
such q clause, will in effect repudiate
the pledges made by the Government
to the employees of the Government
many of whom are receiving the
smallest salaries In the Government
services. The excuse given by Chair
man Wood of the House Appropria-
tions Committee for such action is that
this is no time, with great unemploy-
ment In the country, to increase
salaries of Government workers, whose
pay checks come in regularly. The law
however, has contemplated these in
creases In pay within grade, for the
satisfactory performance of service. The
employe Of the Government quite natu-
rally has come to look upon such in
creases as practically automatic, al
though the law also provides that Con-
eress must in each fiscal year make
the necessary appropriations to cover
these increases. To take away from
the employe this promised paN strikes
q blow at thousands Of faiea3nl Gov
: arnrnent workers; 1t necessarily must
undex such circumstances tend to re-
duce eficiency and strike at the morale
Of the Government service. It is doubt
fIll. indeed, whether the saving to the
Government BY knocking out these
small increases IN pay is justified in
the face of the consequences which
may be expected.
After a1l, the end desired to be OBJ
tanned ~ Tie supporters Of the Wood
amendment y . eurtallment In gov
0rnmental expense 10 reduce In some
measure the deficit which the Treasury
aAmdt*edly faces ct the close Of the
present fiscal year. It seems particu-
LARRY hard that the Government should
undertake to reduce its deficit at the
expense Of its employees In the Civil
Service, many Of whom meet their own
family budgets only With the observance
Of the most extreme economy. Chair
man Wood in presenting his amend
ment to the House, has based the
changes on the fact that millions Of
persons outside the Government service
are today unemployed. Without in any
way minimizing the gravity of the un-
employment situation and the distress
Of the workers who can find no work, it
seems particularly hard that the Gov
ernment which has strongly urged all
employers of labor not to cut salaries,
should now undertake what amounts,
after all, to declination to live up to
its promises to pay for faithful service
performed.
Representative La Guardia of New
York, attacking the wood amend
ment in the House yesterday, as
serted that If the plan were adopt
Cd, 1t would result in indifference
and inefdciency, costly to the Govern
ment. 1T takes every spark of hope
from every employe in the Federal serv-
ice.", the New Yorker said. 1T takes
every incentive to better work and more
efncient service away from every Gov
eminent servant on the pay ROLL
The Wood amendment was made ap-
plicable only to the Treasury and Post
Once appropriation bill, after q gen.
eral proposition for such limitation on
the pay Of Federal employees had gone
out Of the bill ON point of order made
by Mr.. La Guardia. A similar amend
ment must be written into each of the
appropriation bills as they come before
che House for consideration, therefore.
II Is explained, however, that the in
creases contemplated for the Civil serv-
ice employees in the Federal departments
alone are under attack. The increases
which come to postal employees for
faithful service are not to be tampered
with, nor Is the pay Of the commits
sioned ofhcer of the Army and the
Navy: which is increased in accordance
with the length of service. These in
creasas are TO be allowed during the
coming fiscal year.
The fact OF the matter Is that the
dsclination to grant the very modest
increases in pay Is to be denied to
the Government employees least able to
meet the everyday cost of living and
TO lay. up a competence against old age
or disability. Some other method OF
reducing the deficit in the Federal
Treasury should be devised, in justice
% faithful service.