Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-03-19

Services Administration.
The GSA program will give
major voice in determining prom
or unit chiefs.
The system will work some
notify the personnel division of
all vacancies. The personnel di-
vision then will go through its
file of GSA employees and sub
NIT to the unit. several names
OF employees it feels deserve the
promotion. In most cases, the
personnel division will designate
the name of the employee it feels
should get the job.
To build up an adequate en-
ploye file on promotions, the
GSA is asking its employees to
submit information regarding
any additional education or
training they have had since
coming to the agency. The GSA
hopes soon to place this promo
ton reference file on IBM
machines so. the persons best
qualified as candidates for pro-
motion to any job vacancy can
be quickly determined.
Determining the promotions in
the personnel division will be a
panel composed of GSA person
mel officials. The program gets
under way next month and at
first will be confined to GSAsI
departmental employees here. AS
the program progresses. GSA
plans to extend it to all of its
regional offices, including region
8 in the Washington area. The
GSA has scheduled a meeting
with all of its regional personnel
directors next month to discuss
the plan.
Richard McCamant, GSA S.
new personnel director. declares
he feels the program will in
sure that merit will play a great
er role in determining promo
tons than it has in the past
and that 1t will improve employe
morale. The promotions will ne
on an agency-wide basis and
will cut across bureau lines. |
This means an employee in Fed
eral Supply wouldNbe eligible for
promotion to job in Public
Buildings, etc.
Federal employee unions as
we'll as other Government agen-
cies will watch the program
closely. particularly since the
present lack of formal promo
ton programs in Government
has resulted in considerable
criticism and introduction of
bills in Congress to place them
on a formalized merit promotion
board system.
Employe leaders feel the GSA
program might well set a favor
able pattern for the rest Of
Government.
However. aware of rumors
that GSA has been under pres
sure from the Republican Ma
tional Committee to give choice |
jobs to Republicans, they want |
to make sure that promotions
under the new system are
awarded on a merit basis and
not influenced in any way by
political factors.
4 EMPLOYE HEARINGS DE-
LAYED-Both the House and
Senate Civil Service Committees
are expected to devote the major
part Of the next three weeks at
least to postal rate hearings.
This will have the effect of de-
laying hearings on Federal en-
ploye legislation. although the
Senate committee probably will
squeeze in hearings during this
time on the nominations Of the
three Civil Service Commits
sioners.
LIFE INSURANCE BILL
Representative Huddleston.
Democrat of Alabama, has spon-
sored a bill to permit Federal
employees TO carry as much as
$4,000 in life insurance under
the Government employe life in
surance program. Under the
present law, employees life insur-
ance policies are based on the
upper thousandth of their SAL
aries. The Huddleston bill would
permit employees in the lower
salary brackets to raise their
present policy value to $4,000.
at the same rate of IS cents per
pay day per $1,000 worth of
insurance.
PAY RAISE VIEW-In spon-
soring pay raise legislation for
Federal classified and postal
workers. Representative Pelly.
Republican Of Washington. told
the House:
Congress has provided pay
raises for these employees in
recent years. but at no time we're
they sufficient to restore their
salaries to their pre-war level
of purchase power, They have
to wait too long for each increase
for the raise to give them any