Evening star., 1940-01-16
Ranspeck Sees
|Ear|yPassage
|0f His Bill
N.F.F. Meeting Told
Merit System Needs
Selling to Public

Inc pOSSlDluCy OF early passage
by the House of the Ramspeck bill
which would put thousands of ex-
empt positions under civil service
was advanced last night by Repre-
sentative Ramspeck, Democrat, Of
Georgia, author of the legislation, at
a meeting of the District Lodges Of
the National Federal Employees held
to mark the 57th anniversary Of the
signing of the Civil Service Act.
Il am very hopeful that before
this week passes the leaders of the
House will give us the green light on
the bill so we can make this a real
week of celebration" the Georgian.
who Is chairman of the House Civil
Service Committee, told several hun
dred Federal workers at the Willard
Hotel.
The bill has been pending since
the first session Of the Seventy sixth
Congress, when a special rule was
granted for its consideration. 1t
would permit the President to extend
civil service to positions now ex.
cluded by law, as he saw fit, and
would also put field positions under
the Classification Act. The legisla-
ton would complement the Execu-
tive order of June, 1888, which Is
d-signed to bring into the compete
tive system large group Of upper
bracket positions whose status can
be changed without law.
Speaking with Mr.. Ramspeck were
the three civil Service commission
ers-President Harry B. Mitchell
and Commissioners Lucille Foster
McMillin and Arthur S. Flemming,
and Lyle Belsley, executive secre-
tary Of the Civil Service Assembly
of the United States and Canada,
all of whom emphasized the impor-
tance of the pending legislation in
the improvement of Government
personnel standards.
Mr.. Ramspeck declared it was vital
to the Civil Service Commission and
the new Council of Personnel Ad-
ministration that adequate funds
be available for their work, but that
this would not be assured in the
absence of public support. Unless
the public is made cognizant of the
merits of civil service, however, he
continued, I'VE will not have that
support"
II believe that whenever we can
get the majority of the public in
this country to understand that the
merit system is better than the
spoils system, that we won't have
any trouble getting adequate appro-
priations," Mr.. Ramspeck continued.
| Asks Increased Efforts.
"Redouble your efforts in behalf
of the merit system so we may have
the finest public service system Of
any country in the world" he con-
cluded.
Recalling that the Civil Service
Act was signed 81 years ago today,
Mr.. Mitchell declared that over that
stretch of more than half a century
there has been continued progress. ="
He listed as recent gains the Hatch
Act, which limits the political activ-
ity Of Government workers, and the
new law which permits the Social
Security Board to require certain
personnel standards in those State
agencies disbursing Federal funds.
This latter, Mr.. Mitchell said, should
serve as an incentive to the States
to put their entire administrative
| forces under civil service.
Mr.. Flemming scored adminisra-
tive officers who seek to twist civil
service to serve their own ends, de-
claring that these are no less spoils-
men than the politicians commonly
associated with the term.
Hope in Fighting Commission"
"The real hope Of the merit system
Is fighting Civil Service Commits
sion that will move in against spoils-
men, no matter where they may be
found" he emphasized.
Mr.. Belsley discussed the need for
improving in-service training facili-
ties in the Government, to advance
the principle of career service.
The speakers were introduced by
Luther c. Steward. president of the
N. r. F. E., and the speeches were
interspersed with musical numbers
In connection with the anniver-
sary, the National League of Women
Voters issued a statement last night
in which he recounted the advances
being made in the Federal civil serv-
ice: urged that the Civil Service
Commission be adequately financed
and announced that it soon will
publish new basic pamphlet, "The
Awkward Age In Civil Service"