Evening star., 1946-10-22
Budget Director
Gives Warninq
0nCivi|Service
u. S. Must Use Fewer
And More Competent
Workers, Webb Says
BY Joseph Young
ssor stoff CORRESPONDENT

By Joseph Young
ssor ssoff Cores spondsns
NEW YORK, Oct. pa blunt
warning that the Government
will Ahave to operate with fewer
and more competent employees
was made today by James E.
Webb, new director of the Budget
Bureau, in an address before the
Civil Service Assembly.
In his first public statement since
taking Office, Mr.. Webb declared
the taxpayers of the Nation will not
stand for the tremendous sums OF
money that the Government has
been spending for operating purposes
during the past few years.
: Pointing out that the Government
this year is spending more than
$40, ,000, 900 900, Mr.. Webb asked:
"Is there anyone here who doubts
that every one of us is under the
two-fold and continuing necessity
of cutting down the high cost Of
Government and at the same time
increasing the efficiency of Govern
ment service? Does any one here
believe the taxpayers of this country
will continue to foot such bill in
time of peace?"
Must Convince Taxpayer.
The new director Of the Budget
Bureau declared that all Federal
officials will inevitably remain on
the defensive until We achieve such
efficiency in rendering service that
the citizen taxpayer is convinced
that he is getting dollars worth Of
service for each dollar of cost
Although declaring that Federal
employees are entitled to be protected
in their jobs under the merit sys-
tenn, Mr.. Webb declared that "the
public has every right to require
that this protection not deprive the
supervisor of that administration
discretion essential to sound admin
istration. There must be a proper
balance, between job security for the
employe and ability of the super
visor to get the work of his unit done
efficiently"
Mr.. Webb called on personnel di-
rectors and supervisors in the Fed
eral service to get to work and work
out more effective personnel admin
istration policies and to establish
reasonable standards for all phases
of personnel work-recruitment, Sc
lection, pay, promotion. training and
performance evaluation.
Sessions to Continue.
The Assembly, which numbers
among it's members virtually every
agency and department head in the
Federal service, as well as out
standing public officials in States,
counties and cities throughout the
United States, will continue its ses-
sions until Friday.
The more than 800 delegates at
tending the conference yesterday
afternoon heard Ismar Baruch,
Chief of the Civil Service Commis-
sion's Personnel Classification Dr.
vision, declare that the commissions
biggest problem Is converting Civil
Service operations from a war to
peacetime basis.
Mr.. Baruch said the commission
was adopting a policy of giving in
dividual agencies more leeway in
dealing with personnel matters.
The delegates also heard speech
by Francis Russell, director of the
State Departments public affairs
section, who said the Soviet Union
is entitled to a predominant in
fuence" in the neighboring sections
of Eastern Europe.
Qualities Assertion.
Mr.. Russell qualified this asser-
tion, however, by adding that
there is a distinction, however, be-
tween making sure that a neighbor-
ing government is not carrying on
activities that are prejudiced to the
security of the Soviets or the West
ern Democracies as the case may be
there is a distinction between that
on the one hand and absolutely
controlling the neighboring govern
ment to point where it becomes
mere satellite on the other"
The conference delegates started
informal discussions on the subject
of affording some sort of financial
protection to the hundreds of
thousands of Federal employees now
losing their jobs under the current
observation-disclosures program.
Some officials feel that these dis
missed workers should be granted
unemployment compensation - a
right enjoyed by employees in private
industry but denied to public work.
ers. Others feel that dismissed
workers should be given lump dis
missal sum, equal to anywhere be-
tween two and six months pay. All
are agreed, however, that Congress
should take some action when it
reconvenes in January to alleviate
the economic plight of the many
thousands of Federal workers who
served their Government Loyalty
during the war and now find them
selves I1nenonIovad