Evening star., 1943-06-17
War Official Denies
Department Employs
$4,000 as Clerks
Tells House Probers
Byrd Report Erred;
Admits $4,000
By WILL P. KENNEDY.

With the Byrd Economy Com
mittee demanding that 100000
employees be dropped from the
Government payroll as non
essential to the war. a War De-
partment official denied today
before the Civil Service Investi-
eating Committee one assertion
of the Byrd report-that the War
Department has 4l9,00O clerical
employees.
The denial came from James P.
Mitchell, director of the industrial
personnel division of the Army
Service Forces, who asserted that
the exact number would depend on
the definition OF clerical" but if all
in civil service classification 2 were
so rater. there would be $4,000.
Mr. Mitchell was emphatic in con-
tradicting the report that 3d. per
cent of the War Department en-
ployes were clerks and that ASF
had duplicated the setup of the
War ManpoWer Administration.
Backed by Ramspeck.
II don't think so, either" Chair
man Ramspeck commented. adding
that there would have to be that
proportion if the $4,000 figure was
correct
Mr. Mitchell also denied that in
his civilian personnel administration
he had encountered any trouble with
the commissioned personnel. None
whatever" he said
The Byrd committee said slash
Of 100000 in the Federal employ
ment would in no way jeopardize
the war effort. but would increase
efficiency and morale, provide addi-
tional manpoWer for war work. re-
duce the Government payroll and
carry out the spirit of the Over
time Pay Act
The Pay Act established a 48-hour
work week generally in the Govern
ment and was designed, in part, to
check the expansion in the Govern
ment establishment.
The Byrd committee. made up prin-
cipally of members of Senate and
House. includes also Secretary of the
Treasury Morgenthau and Budget
Director Smith. and it was interest =
ing that its conclusions made public
last night, take sharp issue in at
least one respect with Budget Bureau
figures, made public by the White
House some months ago, which
showed that more than 900 900 per-
sons. or approximately 80 per cent
of all Federal civilian workers We're
engaged in war production.
Figures Challenged.
ut is difficult, if not impossible
TO understand the basis for arriving
at such diSproportionate figure, -
said the committee which offered
data to support its contention that
less than As per cent of the civilian
personnel is chiefly engaged in
actual mechanical war production. -
In this category the committee
listed 1.349,098 employees in War.
Navy. Maritime Commission, Ten
nessee Valley Authority. Panama
Canal, Bureau of Standards and Ma
tional Advisory Committee for Aero
nautics. 1t exempted 5l9.438 cler-
ical, administrative and fiscal en-
ployes of the War and Navy Depart
ments.
The committee also condemned
the manner in which wage boosts
had been given. Saving that most
of the agencies studied were open
to cnSure for unwarranted pay
raises" it amplified that the War
Production Board and the Board
Of Economic Warfare were the out
standing offenders.
"Wasteful and eXtravagant mis-
use of Federal funds" it asserted,
have been accelerated" by skip
grade promotions under the Clas-
siflcation Act. adding that in one
agency funds were used in this man.
ner at the rate of more than ST ,OOO,-
900 annually.
The committee said that the
budget director can make half of
the cuts proposed under the Over
time Pay Act authority, which gives
him the power to reduce forces
where deemed feasible. In the
agencies not affected by the law. it
was added, the officials in charge
should make the reductions.
Problem Held Acute.
Putting the total Federal force at
3,O08,519 on April l the committee
said that despite its recommended
tions in December, 194l, that ad-
ministrative costs be held to a mini
mum. the problem today is more
(See PERSONNEL, Page A-22)