Evening star., 1933-08-01
IGNORES POLICY
IN FILLING Jobs
Home Loan Board Will Not
Favor Those With Civil
Service Status.
Continued From First Page

ployment of additional people in any
and all Federal units"
On employment, Chairman Steven.
sons statement said:
Another series of questions at two
OF the recent press conferences covered
the status Of civil service employes
/ temporarily furloughed or discharp,d
III other executive and independent es
adjustments, who might seek emnlov-
ment with the Federal Home Loan Bank
Board or the Home Owners Loan
corporation. and who feel entitled 10
consideration under the merit system
AS spokesman for the board l have
ehdeaVored already to explain a civil
service status of any applicant for
position will carry its own weight and
De accorded every consideration by the
appointing authorities However the
board and the corporation reserve the
rlght. IN each case, to select their own
employees on the basis of general fitness
and efficiency. The act of June 13 ey-
pressly provided for such a course when
| Congress said:
The corporation shall have power to
select, employ and fix the compensation
OF such officers. employees. ATTORNEYS or
I
performance of its duties under this act
without regard to the provision of other
laws applicable 10 the employment or
compensation of officers. employees at
torneys or agents of the United States.
Applications for positions in the Dis
tr1ct of Columbia. filed both by former
civil service employees and by others
VINO have no classified rating, greatly
1 outnumber the positions to be filled.
ooth IN Washington. D. c.. ana in the
held, and in the set-ups here and in
/ the 48 States but a small percentage of
/ tie applicants. no matter how worthy
| OF employment they may be, can be
/ given positions
Awaits Attorney General.
Meanwhile, today the Civil Service
commission was awaiting formal noti-
ncatlon OF the opinion of Attorney Gen.
eral Cummings that those persons drop
! pea from service by operation Of the
marital status law are eligible for re.
/ employment in the emergency agencies.
They have heretofore been barred
( from the commissions re-emploYaent
registers. the law being explicit so far
as regards their Unemployment in THE
regular Government establishment and
! there was doubt as to their status Ia
the new groups.
In his opinion the Attorney General
quotes the law that says in appoint-
. mentS to the classified service perfer.
ence shall be given to persons other
than those with husband or wife in
Federal employ. then adds:
This provision has no application to
appointments under the national in
duStrlal recovery act for the reason
that the preference in appointment is
restricted to the appointment of per-
sons in the classified civil service,
while appointments under the industrial
recovery act are made without regard
to the civil service laws or the classifi-
cation act"
Just h-w many persons will be
affected by the Cummings opinion is
problematical 1t has been estimated
that around 1000 workers have been
dropped here under the marital status
clause. but the Civil Service Commits
sion has no figures on this
another doubtful point is whether
the amount of salary earned BY the
emp, yed husband or wife is to be taken
INTO consideration. although this may
not fguTe. When the question of re-
employing married workers was first
under discussion there was a feeling
that such a concession would be de-
signed TO apply in low -salaried cases.
Reinstatement League Disbands,
Another development came in the en-
| ploymsnt situation today when the dis
Dandment of the Civil Service Rein
statement League was announced bv
Cecil E. Custer. executive secretary Of
the American Federation of Govern
ment Employees, which sponsored forma-
ton OF the league last month to aid
the cause of ousted workers
Tla ,iu,ot l. L
Simpson, president of the Interstate
Commerce Commission Lodge of the
Federation OF Government Employees
was composed almost entirely of dis
missed or furloughed Federal employees,
and its principal activity had been in
presenting the case of this class to
President Roosevelt
With the administration on record in
favor OF re-employing persons with
civil service status in the new agencies,
and the way now opened for married
workers to be taken back, officials feel
that there is no longer any field for
the league to occupy.
To Advance Members Cause
The Federation itself. Custer said
would continue to advance primarily
the cause of its own members. and. to
the extent of its laborS in this direc-
tion. that Of all
A group from the league. dissatisfied
with the suspension of meetings for the
past two weeks called late yesterday
at the headquarters of the Federation
of Government Employees in the Ouray
Building to protest against the situa-
tion and press for more action. Gus
ter advised them that SO far as the
Federation Is concerned, the policy will
be unchanged
Miss Eleanor Nelson of the Labor
Department. leader Of the group. said
today it had not been decided if the
league would function independently.
and that the future program of the
diSsidentS would await a conference