Evening star., 1951-10-13
Trotting Out Thot Old Wheeze

The reason cited by President Truman for
opposing the suggestion that Internal Revenue
collectors be placed under civil service is one
which the Civil Service Commission has said is
without validity Mr.. Truman told his press con-
ference that it Is sometimes very difficult to
handle civil service employees when they get into
places of responsibility and that there are so
many regulations it is difficult to fire a man
when he goes wrong.
1t so happens that the same day the
President was making this statement Chairman
Ramspeck of the Civil Service Commission was
telling the Civil Service Assembly in Detroit:
When the old wheeze is trotted out-about how
it is impossible to fire Federal employe-our
factual but effective answer can truthfuy be
that in the last fiscal year 1880 were dis
charged"
Furthermore, the Civil Service Commission.
in promulgating the Executive Order of May /,
1947. setting up present rules for dislnissng en-
ployeS, said: There is a common belief that
civil service employe cannot be removed from his
position without hearing before the Civil Serv-
ice Commission This belief is erroneous. The
new rules and regulations show clearly that
agencies are responsible for the separation or
demotion of employees whose conduct or capacity
is such that their separation or demoton will
promote the efficiency of the service. They show
that the only procedure necessary to separate
permanent empoye is to give him copy of the
charges against him and to allow him reason
able time for answering the charges"
Except in the case of war veterans, existing
regulations give agency heads complete authority
to get rid Of an unsatisfactory employe within
48 hours, which has been held reasonable
period" for replying to charges. The head does
not have TO grant hearing to the employe 1t
is discretionary with the agency as to whether
the answer is accepted as sufficient to justify
reconsideration. non-veteran employe has no
right OF appeal to any one unless he can show
that the foregoing dismissal procedure has not
been adhered to. Congress has provided some red
tape in the firing of veterans, however. Veterans
can appeal to the Civil Service Commission There
have been cases in which these appeals have
been long drawn out. The Hoover Commission
task force on Federal personnel said "The right
of veterans to appeal to the commission imposes
definite restraint on the operating agencies"
The report added: Gas a consequence agencies
often dispose of problem cases by transfers and
reassignmentS, or by abolishing jobs, to avoid
unpleasant hearings or incidents which might
jeopardize congressional relationships 1t is i'm
portant to note that such practices are not re-
quired or condoned by the rules and regulations
of the Civil Service Commission and that much
of the problem is clearly chargeable to internal
agency practices
1t is too bad that the President was so un-
familiar with his own executive orders governing
dismisSalS as to fall for what Mr.. Ramspeck aptly
calls that old wheeze" about the difficulty of
firing faithless or incompetent civil service
employe. If there are any good reasons for con-
tinuing to keep the Internal Revenue-or the
Post ONCE Departmental politics, civil service
firing procedures is not one Of them.