Evening star., 1932-12-30
CAMPBELL HITS
PLAN TO REPEAL
CLASSIFYING LAW
Civil Service Head Declares
Mcclellan Proposal Is
Step Backward.
REFERS TO CONDITIONS
WHICH CAUSED REFORMS
Declares Theory That Economies
Would Be Effected by Move
Is Based on Error.

The proposal OF Senator McKellar,
Democrat. Tennessee, to repeal the
classification act today drew a strong
dissent from the Civil Service Com
mission.
Writing to the Tennessee Senator,
who introduced his bill on December 6,
President Campbell Of the Civil Service
Commission said:
The commission regards the claSsi-
hcation act as the most forward looking
statute affecting personnel administra-
ton in the Government service since
the passage Of the civil service act itself
This view Is based not only upon the
many benefits and improvements fiow-
ing from salary equalization and stand
ardlzation-which accrue regardless Of
how high or how low the general levels
OF the compensation schedules eStab-
hshed by Congress may be-but also
upon the advantages of the systematic
plan authorized by the classification act
for classifying positions according to
their duties, tasks, responsibilities and
qualification retirements."
Cites Past Conditions.
In support Of the commissions stand
President Campbell outlines the con-
dit.ons which brought about the enact
ment of the classification act in 1923.
Prior to that time, he said. consistent
and logical relationships between the
duties, the qualification requirements
and the salaries Of positions in the
Government service were the exception
rather than the rule"
He adds that In some instances sal
aries were fixed for positions through
the enactment Of so-called statutory
agency of the Government.
These rolls" the Civil Service head
continued authorize specified salaries
for a specified number Of positions
which were given specified designations,
but so long as these designations were
carried on the pay rolls there was no
provision for seeing that employees so
paid actually performed duties CORE
spending to such designations and pay.
In other instances, where payment was
TO be made from lump sum appropri-
alton, salaries for individual positions
were fixed by large number Of exec
utiye officials spread throughout the
different departments and establish
ments. Each one Of these, operating
independently of all the others. was au-
thorized to nix rates Of pay according
to his own judgment"
Effort Made in 1902.
Under this situation, President Camp
bell continued, Government Offices
operating under these lump sum ap.
propriations were able to bid for quail
fed workers against other establish
ments where statutory rolls prevailed.
An effort had been made to change
condition 1Q0O
bell said, recalling that in that year
the Civil Service Commission had urged
remedial legislation. Eventually, he
points out. the Congress took action
which resulted in passage of the act.
which now is administered by the Civil
Service Commission since the abolish
ment Of the Personnel Classification
Board last October.
In taking over the administration Of
this act. the commission has begun
the collection of data which will enable
1t to make more adequate class Speci-
f1cation, which, as Campbell amplifies,
will serve as useful pools in Clarity
ing and facilitating the functions. proc
mel administration" This, he adds,
will allow departments to have a defp-
lite means OF expressing their exact
personnel needs to the commission, and
will aid the commission in recruiting
and testing employees.
Involves Merit System.
THE necessity for the maintenance
Of such systematic basis for civil
service administration is intimately
woven into the fabric Of the merit sys-
tenn itself" President Campbell en-
phasizes.
u.,,+hs- r.-.zL.,, .a,.. aYt -o.-
without saying that for the commission
cruiting, testing and certifying quail
fed employees for Government positions,
there must be logical and consistent
relations among three factors that vi
tally affect plans, policies and decisions
in personnel administration; namely, the
duties and responsibilities of positions,
the qualifications required to fill them
and the salaries offered Under the
classification act this is assured"
"In short" President Campbell adds,
under the classification act good civil
service administration is facilitated be-
cause the simpler duties. the less exact
ing qualification requirements and the
lower scales of pay go together; the
more difficult and responsible duties,
the higher qualification requirements
and the higher scales OF pay go to.
gether, and 50 on, all in well-ordered
process.
Would Be Step Backward.
"This situation now prevails in the
departmental service. The classification
act authorizes the commission to see
that it continues to prevail. To repeal
the classification act in its entirety on
the mistaken theory that such a step
would lead to economy-to revert to
the very conditions that caused Con-
gress, after a survey by a joint legisla-
tive commission, to enact such legisla-
ton and to allow the relationships be-
tween duties. qualification requirements
and salaries to be determined in hap
hazard and helter-skelter fashion of
decade ago, with no attempt at CO.
ordination among the various depart
ments-would be not only tremendous
step backward in the Governments
progress toward better technique in per-
sonnel administration generally, includ-
ing the fixing and adjusting Of salaries,
but a direct handicap in the admin
istration of the merit system itself"
Senator McKellar Is the ranking
Democrat on the Senate Civil Service
Committee, and copies of the letter were
forwarded also to Senator Dale, Repub-
lican, Vermont, the chairman, and to
Representative Jeffers, Democrat, Ala
bama, chairman of the House Civil
Service Committee, and Representative
Lehlbach, Republican, New Jersey,
ranking minority member on the House
Civil Service Committee
Named pilots' Examiner.