Evening star., 1943-07-20
D. {. Sought 10 Defer
Only IS Besides Men
In Vital Services
$3.50 Were Requested
Placed on VINO List
Of Key Employees

Commissioners reported today that
only IS requests for draft. defer
ments have been made since March
%, exclusive of police, firemen and
penal guards. 1t added that out Of
1858 positions In the local gov
ernment, $3.50 were requested
placed on the list of key employees
prepared for the War Manpower
Commission.
Four of the deferments were for
the Board of Education, two for the
Health Department., one for the
Public Utilities Commission, six for
the Engineer Department. one for
the city Jail and one for the Indus
trial Home School for Colored. No
individual names were given.
The report informed the Com
missioners that on July a letter
was sent to Robert NJ Barnett.
chairman of the ReYiew Committee
of VINO. in which requests we're
made for consideration for a
number Of positions which had
previously been disapproved by the
Review Committee The number
OF positions on which reconsidcra-
ton was requested totaled 536, OF
which 129 were first class privates
in the Fire Department who had
served less than one year in the de-
partment.
Requests Are Explained.
These positions In the Fire De-
psrtment were strenuously urged for
consideration as key positions. since
in the considered Judgment of Dis
trict officials it is imperative that
men within the age limits now pre-
scribed and who possess the re-
quisite stamina to perform the haz-
ardous and strenuous physical ex-
ertion required of fireman be re-
tanned in the department to assure
adequate protection to the District
of Columbia.
The list for reconsideration also
included certain engineers in the
water and sewer divisions which
were deemed essential in the opera
ton of our government"
OF the total of 3,76O positions re-
quested by the agency committee
for the key list, 1874 were police
men, 889 flremen, and 1,247 in other
departments. The committee said
that of this total, only Its fell
into the 1887 year age classification.
If the manpower in the police
and fire departments is. substracted
from the grand totals, we find that
The District Commissioners re-
quested key position classification
for only 80 per cent for males with
in the 1887 year group. At no time
have we ever appealed for either
deferments or placement on key
positions for our employees to the
Costello Committee "a House group
investigating deferments in Govern
ment)."
Group Exercises Care.
The Agency Committee. said 1t
had always been cognizant Of the
shortage of manpower which has
existed and Is extant within the
District Of Columbia Government
service" but 1t assured the Com
missioners that each and every
case that has come before the COM
mittee" was carefully weighed to
determine whether the position was
absolutely essential or not.
I'VE feel very strongly that the
employees of our Fire Department,
regardless ct the length of service,
should be placed on the key list. We
also feel that reconsideration should
be granted in the case of the spe-
cialized engineers in our water, sew
er, public school and other DEPART
ments."
The committee reminded the Com
missioners that "it must be borne in
mind that a request by the Commis-
sioners for the placement of po-
sition on the key list is not a re-
quest for deferment, since many key
positions are occupied by males be-
tween the ages of SO and 65 and in
some instances by women; We were
required to submit this list, and 1t
was prepared regardless of sex or
age. There is no appeal from the
findings of the War Manpower Com
mission"
The committee report was signed
by Budget Ofiicer Walter l.. Fowler,
chairman: Col. Joseph D. Arthur,
jr., Assistant Engineer Commis-
sioner; Corporation Counsel Rich
mond b. Keech, Police Inspector
Harvey G. Callahan and Geoffrey
N naroAft sAerefarv tn the C!n,,n.