Evening star., 1942-11-20
Roosevelt Bars
i. ). Worker
Commissions
En|istments Also Out:
New Monpower PIon
To Protect War Plants

President Roosevelt today tenn
porarily banned enlistments or
commissioning of Government
employees following the rush of
Federal workers to get into the
service on the heels of his Tues
day order excluding Government
employment as a basis for draft
deferment.
The Chief Executive told his press
conference that many Federal en-
ployes in Washington are really es-
sential on their present jobs and
should stay where they are instead
of going into uniform.
The process of finding out who is
essential to the Government may
take two or three months, he ex-
planned.
In the meantime the President
has directed the Secretary of War
and the Secretary of the Navy not
to enlist or commission any pres
ent Government employees without
approval of the head of their
agency.
More Uniformity Sought.
The President also disclosed he
expects to announce soon new
national manpower setup to extend
the orderly process OF getting men
into uniform to workers in all in
dustries.
The new set-up, he said, would
prevent the drafting or the enlisting
of persons out of munitions plants
where they hold essential jobs and
are irreplaceable.
Declaring it was now difficult to
get any uniformity in classification
of essential workers through thou
sands of local draft boards, Mr..
Roosevelt said the new arrangement
would provide for more uniformity,
perhaps by arranging for factory
managers to designate irreplaceable
men to their draft boards before
cases reach the appeal stage.
Not Enough Consultation.
He said he believed the manage
ment element could provide a par
tial solution to the problem of uni
formity. There is not enough con-
sultation with factories now, the
President asserted.
Although he expects the new
manpower organization to go into
action soon, the President said he
could not say finally yet whether
legislation would be required. He
added, however, that he did not be-
lieve much legislation would be nee
essary in the beginning at least.
It is still an open question, he
said, whether contemplated regis
tration Of women to determine how
many are available for war jobs will
be compulsory or voluntary.
The President MADE public his
memorandum to Secretary Stimson
and Secretary Knox, which ex-
planned that through exceptions to
his blanket order against the defer
ment Of Federal workers solely be-
cause of their Government employ
nent he hoped ito make sure that
no one who is really irreplacable
shall be separated from an essential
position"
Arsenals, Navy Yard Covered.
This should be an orderly process,
carried through in the regular way
by the selective service system" he
added in the memorandum. 1T
should not be done by the haphaz-
ard enlisting or commission of
people now in the Government
service"
AL Government departments and
agencies will be given opportunity
Ito present applications for exemp-
tions to the blanket order" the
President said. He explained that
these applications will be submitted
to him and passed upon by my
representative.
1t was his intention in the Novem-
Der II memorandum only to exclude
Federal employment as basis for de-
ferment as such, Mr.. Roosevelt
added, leaving the other grounds for
deferment untouched.
While the process of determining
Just what men in Government work
are essential is underway, the Presi-
dent wrote Mr.. Stimson and Mr..
Knox they should see to it that pres
ent Government employees who have
been deferred are not enlisted or
given commissions without release
by the head of their agency. This
applies to employees in Army arsenals
and Navy yards as we'll as to regular
civilian employees Of the Govern
ment, he explained.
Cites Draft Board Differences.
Asked at his press conference to give
an example Of an essential job in a
war plant, the President said persons
who had accompanied him on his
recent inspection swing around the
(see ROOSEVELT. Page A-40