15
political influences. However, in none
of the departments are there present all
the elements of a true merit system,
i.e., appointment, promotion, and dis
missal solely on the basis of merit; com
petitive examinations;
appointment
from registers of eligible persons; and
permanency of tenure subject only to
satisfactory service.
The only branches of the Oregon
state government in which the signifi
cant elements of a merit system are ap
proximated are those state agencies
which establish and maintain merit
systems as one of the conditions pre
requisite to receiving Federal subven
tions. These are the State Public Wel
fare Commission, the State Unemploy
ment Compensation Commission, the
State Board of Health, and Crippled
Children’s Division of the University
of Oregon Medical School.
Each of these administrative agen
cies maintains a merit-system office.
The three offices operate on similar
lines. The Merit System Council of
the State Public Welfare Commission
will be used as an example here.
The Oregon State Public Welfare
Commission is composed of seven citi
zens appointed by the governor for
overlapping terms. The commission,
in turn, appoints a Merit System Coun
cil of three members for overlapping
three-year terms. These citizens serve
without pay. They appoint a full-time
merit system supervisor who supervises
the merit system of personnel admin
istration for the approximately 600 em
ployees of the state and county public
welfare commissions.
When the merit system was estab
lished in the Public Welfare Commis
sion in 1941, the commission and the
council cooperated in the development
of a classification plan. Under this
plan, the duties of every position in the
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