SIX STEPS TO AN IMPROVED CIVIL SERVICE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP81-00314R000200060057-4
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 25, 2002
• Sequence Number: 57
• Publication Date: March 6, 1952
• Content Type: REGULATION

Approved- For Release 2002/03/22 : CIA-RDP81-0 3,4R000200060057-4
PERSONNEL DIRECTOR NE MORMIDUM NO. 15-52
6 birch 1952
The following brief of an address by Commissioner James M. Mitchell
of the United States Civil Service Commission is published as a matter
of interest to members of the Personnel Office.
In an address delivered before the Society for Personnel
Administration on 26 February 1952, Mr. Mitchell turned the
spotlight on 165,000 Federal jobs which are still outside the
Civil Service system and called for action to "sweep the cling-
ing cobwebs of the spoils system out of our public life." He
stated that all of these jobs should be brought fully under
the competitive civil service except where it can be shown
clearly that a job is of a policy-determining character or is
logically a t of some other personnel system which is m -
mana on a s c meribasis.
Mr. Mitchell stated that "Many improvements have been made
in recent years and many more are in the mill. But we cannot
be content with less than the best and we cannot afford to
procrastinate. We must have, in being, a Federal personnel
system that will ;ive us a public service of unquestioned
efficiency and integrity, managed entirely on a merit basis."
He went on to discuss the following steps to an improved civil
services
"First, we must give direction and force to the present
move in Congress bringing more Federal jobs under the
civil service system.
"Second# we must measure not only the ability but also
the character and integrity of those who aspire to
careers in public life.
"Third, in filling jobs by promotion we must have effec?
ve means of searching out the best man, whether he is
in our bureau or our agency or even, in the case of top
jobs, in some totally different agency of government?
"Fou
rth, we must train Federal workers, as industry does,
G 71
not-My on the job but in plants, laboratories and
universities as needs require.
"Fifth, we must provide incentives for the weeding out of
unneeded or unsatisfactory employees, at the same time
retaining safeguards to protect the good employee from
arbitrary dismissal.
Approv
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"And Sixth, but by no means least in importance, we must enlist
the erstanding and support of our fair-minded American public
in the cause of better management of our government--the biggest
business on earth,"
"We cannot permit the civil service system to be used as a cloak
to cover selections which basically have a litical intent and
mot so, we are risking a tide t~ o5u c sen -
vaon, we do
men which may sweep away the good with the bad. There must be
no political clearance required in any purely administrative
appointment.....And while we are sweeping the cobwebs of politi-
cal patronage out one door of our civil service structure, we
must beware of the stealthy entrance of 'personal patronage'
throug.i another door." Mr. Mitchell went on to say that the
appointment authorities extended to the Federal agencies as a
result of the Korean emergency brought about far too many
appointments outside civil service lists of eligibles. Fie
pointed out that the various agencies could require, through
Civil Service Boards of Examiners, that their appointees do
meet open, competitive standards and commented that, "A encies
M
must do more competitive testing of job applicants!--app
lv-g
s andards set the Com ss on- ` are eagainst cha_rgess of 'personal atrona ~e,' is noeenou that
appointees meet the riin mum civil service requirements. There
must be open competition to insure that jobs are filled with the
best available applicants."
"Furthermore, our concept of competitive selection must be
broadened to place greater'emphasis on personal qualities.
For positions that require public contact, we must choose those
persons who have demonstrated their ability to get along well
with others."
Mr. Mitchell also discussed the need for competitive promotion.
He stated that this principle had an obviously direct effect on efficiency
and added that it had an indirect effect in boosting employee morale.
"When we talk about layoffs and removals, we must come to, grips with
the supervisor's natural human reluctame to take action that
will throw a subordinate out of work. To begin with, a good
supervisor knows the personal problems of his employees, He
hesitates to aggravate those problems by cutting off an employee's
pay check. Therefore, incentives must be found to offset the
supervisor's reluctance to declare personnel surplus when the
workload dwindles."
"Such incentives would be full effective only if a well administered
placement service-bureau-wide,, agency-wide and even, government-
wide--were in operation."
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In his final remarks, Mr, Mitchell stated that in addition to
the "six steps" there were many other suggestions for improvement
in matters auch as flexibility of pay policy and in overseas
personnel admih.istrationo In conclusion, he stated that, "All of
us in America, and especially those-of us who carry part of the respon-
sibility for Federal personnel management, have a rest obligation to
do our utmost to see that the public service is the best that we in
America can possible creats,t'
/s/
GEORGE E. MELOON
Acting Personnel Director
Approved For Release 2002/03/22 : CIA-RDP81-00314R000200060057-4