Evening star., 1935-01-10
Improving Public Service.

tee on Social Trends was that a study
be undertaken of some of the prob
lens of public service personnel, and
in December of 1888 the Social
Science Research Council appointed
a Commission Of Inquiry on Public
Service Personnel which, financed by
the Spelman Fund, conducted an in
quiry. The results have been pub
lished as a report Ito the American
people"
The report finds that our govern
mental units, Federal, State and local,
do not generally offer the more cap
able men and women a fair chance,
in any way comparable with that Of
fered by private business. industry or
the professions, for a lifetime of hon.
orable work affording opportunity for
advancement based on merit and ac-
complishment. The spoils system, the
use of the public pay roll for charity,
undiScriminating criticism of public
employees and the failure to adjust
our ideas, our governmental institu-
tions and our public personnel policies
to the social and economic changes
since the Civil War, are primarily re-
sponsible for this condition"
The report suggests that positive
constructive action" rather than
negative prohibitive Legislation" Of
fers the way to improvement and
also offers new American public
personnel program. But of particular
interest in Washington are the spe-
cific recommendations for improve
ment of the Federal public service
These include:
Placing all postmasterships in the
civil service system, with their re-
cruitment primarily by promotion
and the placing of all Federal deputy
collectors of Internal Revenue and
marshals in the classified civil service.
The extension of civil service and
merit system to professional and
skilled services of the regular depart
ments. which now are excepted, to-
gether with immediate extension of
the civil service to personnel of emer-
gency agencies
Extension of the merit system
under supervision of the Civil Service
Commission to personnel of all State
and local government agencies which
receive or spend Federal funds.
Amendment of veteran preference
laws to remove their conflict with
principles of the merit system, repeal
of the general quota law" provisions
and repeal of the married persons
clause Of the economy act.
These recommendations are all
aimed at extension of the principles
of the merit system. They are all
logical, all unopposed by those who
are willing to be guided by the prin-
ciple that merit should be the basic
qualification for government Office.
But their application will be resisted
as long as the political spokesman
regards public service-Federal, State
or local-as his own and his
party's possession, to be apportioned
in patronage as he wills. Recon-
mendations for improving the public
service, such as those just made, are
valuable when there exists demand
for its improvement. But that de-
mand will not be effective until it
is greater than the demand of the
spoilsmen. The American people
must be taught that a large part of
their tax burden is represented in the
estimated four and half billion
dollars they spend annually on SAL
aries of public service personnel. The
way to bring economies which might
lessen this tax burden does not lie
in blind, horizontal salary reductions
or the drastic reduction in main
tenance costs of necessary govern
mental functions, but in the steady
through selection based
on merit of public service personnel.
This will be possible when there Is
general recognition that governments
are maintained for the people and not
for the spoilsmen.