Evening star., 1934-01-10
APPORT|ON|NG LAW
HELD DUNWORKAbLE
Recruiting Workers for Emer-
gency Jobs Here Difficult,
Report Shows.

The need Of the Government for
emergency help again is demonstrating
the unworkability of the civil service
apportionment law.
This was brought out In testimony
before the House Appropriations SUBJ
committee handling the Independent
Offices bill, while the Civil Service Com
mission appropriations was under dis
cussion, a record of the hearing showed
today.
For one thing. when the new agen-
cies need help, 1t was brought out, 1t
Is necessary to get it as speedily as
possible, and that means seeking work.
ers in this area: for another, the pos
sibility Of impermanency, coupled with
the generally prevailing salary scale,
deters recruiting from distant States.
The situation reflects condition
growing out of the economy act, pro-
viding that presidential approval must
be had for making permanent appoint
ments.
This Is resulting in administrative
officers getting around this by making
thousands Of temporary" appointments
for their immediate needs 1t was
of the examining division. He was
being questioned by Representative
Woodrum. Democrat. of Virginia, chair
man Of the subcommittee: Representa-
tive Hastings, Democrat, Of Oklahoma.
who has been an ardent advocate OF
strict adherence to the apportionment
law which provides for appointments
according to State population, and
Representative Boylan, Democrat, OF
New York.
Difficulty Expected.
At one point, Boylan asked whether
the commission had an eligible list Of
StenographerS
I'VE have" Yaden replied, 'but we are
experiencing great difficulty in getting
that list, asking the eligibles If they
are willing to come to Washington to
accept appointment.
"At what salary?" Boylan interjected.
Usually $1.44o, less Is per cent"
Yaden answered. About half of them
say yes, then, when We ask them to
come within two or three weeks, we
get one out of four or one out of five
who will come"
In response to a question by Mr..
Hastings, Mr.. Yaden later incorporated
in the record a table showing appoint
ments in relation to State quotas, as
follows:
Eligibles certified for temporary ap-
polntment from States in arrears, 2,748;
from States in excess and the District
Of Columbia, 5,l82, for total Of 1880.
Temporary appointments from States
in arrears, 1923; from States in excess
and the District of Columbia, 2,729, for
a total of 1852.
Two Registers.
1.-THE commission maintains two gen.
eral groups of registers of eligibleS. one
loosely termed the regular registers
(Which are established as the result of
open competitive examination0. the
other termed the Unemployment lists
(Which are made up of persons who
within the past year have been sep
arated from the service for reduction
of force or furloughed for 80 days or
more)," YadenS statement said. There
is strict observance by the commission
of the apportionment in certifying from
either of these groups of registers to
fill permanent or probational positions
in the departmental service at Washing
ton. For temporary positions, however
the commission has been frequently
called upon by different emergency
agencies to send them within "a or 48
hours persons whose names appeared
on the commissions eligible registers
and who were ready to report at once
for emergency temporary duty. For
these temporary and emergency ap-
pointments the commission necessarily
had to certify, or furnish the names of.
persons who were living within the i'm
mediate vicinity Of the District of Co
iumbia. That is why the statistics show
a greater number of persons certified
and employed from States in excess
than from the States in arrears of their
share in appointments in the appor-
toned service in the District OF Co
lumbia"
In regard to the unemployment reg
lister, which now shows about $500
names, Yaden said:
Since March 4, 1898, approximately
1900 names have been entered on the
unemployment lists and have been used
in certifications for both permanent and
temporary appointments. If not cert1-
fed to fill permanent positions, prac-
| tically every one of the eligibles on
these lists for such clerical positions as
stenographer, typist, file clerk and sta
tistical clerk has been certified one or
more times in connection with certifica-
tions to fill 827 temporary positions"
When Yaden disclosed the practice Of
making these temporary appointments,
Hastings asked:
Am I to understand then, that the
way a departmental head gets around
going to the President Is by making q
temporary appointments"
well, Mr.. Hastings" Yaden replied,
you use the words getting around I
am not using those words, but that Is a
practice"
Anyhow" Hastings replied, whether
you use the words getting around or
not. that is the way 1t Is done?"
THAT is the way 1t is done, pretty
generally" was the answer.
Yaden then recommended that jobs
paying less than $4,000 be exempted
from being filled by executive order.