Evening star., 1943-06-17

committee is conducting hearings a
which testimony has been givel
showing the need for such a depart
mental pool.
1t is also recommended in the re.
port filed in the Senate today tha
the Civil Service Commission exer.
else its authority to guard against
recruiting, interviewing, investigat.
ing and placing of employees by tn.
personnel officers of various depart.
ments and agencies
1t is also urged that all personne
officers, pending action on these rec
ommendatio tions, take steps to i'm
prove the selection of their EN-,
ployes as to qualify in order that
/ the number of new employees hirec
may be reduced to a minimum ano
that the Civil Service Commission
take full responsibility for this &C.
| ton.
Would Halt Malpractice.
The commission and the Budget
Bureau are called on by the COM
mlttee ito use their respective au.
thority to prevent the wasteful per-
sonnel malpractices prevalent with
in the Federal service.
IF this cannot be achieved in q
cooperative and effective manner
the entire personnel servicing and
busineSs-management functions of
the Federal Government should be
reorganized," the Byrd report
warns. This opinion comedies with
that expressed at hearings by the
Ramspeck committee.
The Byrd report recommends fur
ther that to reduce recruiting, elm
mate overstafflng and make effective
the war transfer program. the Civil
Service Committee, in conjunction
with the Budget Bureau, adopt the
following procedure:
tA) Under authority of the Budget
Bureau and on information gathered
by that agency from all sources, the
Budget Bureau prepare and fur
nish the Civil Service Commission
with information as to the exist
ence and contemplated existence
of surplus employees in every de-
partment and agency.
tB) The commission. by using its
authority in War Manpower Di-
rective No. 10, use the services of
these employees and place them
where they can be utilized before
recruiting any single new employe
IS Per Cent Outside Capital.
At the Civil Service Committee
hearing today Mr.. Mitchell empha-
sized that employment in the Army
Service Forces is not primarily in
Washington, as is generally believed
but that 95 per cent is outside the
Washington Metropolitan Area
1874 900 in arsenals making ordnance
and munitions or in depots storing
it, or shipping it to the fighting
forces; 223,000 are in service COM
mands: many more thousands are
research workers and technicians,
and at least 10000 are seamen, en-
gineers, mates and masters carry
ing troops and supplies.
In my opinion. the contributions
OF these people have been grossly
minimized," he said, "as are the
services of thousands of other loyal.
hard-Working faithful Government
workers. Here are 646,854 men and
379,3OO women who are doing their
part under odds to bring the war to
speedy and successful conclusion. !"
The main task of the personnel
officer, Mr.. Mitchell pointed out. is
serving as staff advisor to the line
executive on how that executive can
best use his personnel to get the Job
done. Personnel officers do not hire
and fire workers, train them, set
their wages, or other such tasks.
Responsible Personnel.
Those things are the response
bility of the foreman, the supervisor
the commanding officer, bureau
chief or department head, and can
not be lodged by him" he said, re-
plying to questions repeatedly asked
by the committee as to where re-
sponsibility for certain delinquencies
lies.
Regarding wage controversies or
employment troubles along that line,
Mr.. Mitchell, answering a direct
question by Representative Rees, Re-
publican, of Kansas said, IF per-
mitted to pay the going market rate
many recruitment and turnover
problems would be relieved"
He had previously declared that
about half the ASF personnel are
under the classification system, and
he has found need for more fexi-
bility to departments operating in
the field service in attaching rates
of compensation to the grades un-
der classification"
He said that happily fertile
source of employe discomfort and
muddy administration has been re-
moved by passage of the uniform
overtime legislation"
Half Unclassified.
Members of the committee eX-
pressed amazement when told that
approximately one-half the civilian
employees of ASF are in the ungraded
category, occupying jobs that are not
covered by the Federal claSSlflcation
statutes-that are recruitive but not
under the civil service, which has
nothing to do with their salary OF
grade ratings"
These 502,462 workers are paid
rates prevailing in the areas where
employed. To take care of that
situation the ASF called in the
country's leading authorities on wage
administration and asked them to
develop system that could be used
to insure establishment of equitable
and uniform wage rates. The result
Of their labors will stand as a per-
manent contribution to the science
OF wage administration" he said
and had received the approval OF
the War Labor Board"
Between January and May OF
| this year, Mr.. Mitchell said, 10