14
Modem Merit System in Practice
From a Pamphlet Prepared by the National
Civil Service Reform League.
The modern merit system is a prac
tical and essential tool of good public
administration.
It is a far cry from defensive ham
stringing procedures which until re
cent years prevailed in most civil ser
vice jurisdictions, and persist even to
day in unprogressive communities.
To make known in all communities
the nature and advantage of a real
merit system is the task of every citizen
who would make democracy strong
within.
SERVICE . . .
Opportunity to compete for public
employment is only one purpose of the
merit system. Its primary object is to
enable administrators to secure prompt
ly and without the wrangling and
waste of spoils politics, highly compe
tent employees when and as they are
needed. The modern merit system is
welcomed by appointing officers be
cause /? can render service.
Method: The national defense appropri
ation bills of 1940 proposed to ex
empt defense employees from the
merit system. Officials of the War
and Navy Departments appeared be
fore Congressional Committees and
insisted upon the merit system as ab
solutely essential to speedy recruit
ment of qualified employees. They
did not relish the delay caused by
politicians wrangling over appoint
ments. The exemption was stricken
from the bills.
COOPERATION . . .
Appointing officers welcome the
merit system when it is a prompt and
flexible tool which aids them in their
work. Antagonisms which spring from
suspicion, haggling and policing under
the old civil service process disappear.
Today, under modern merit practice,
operating officials appreciate the ser
vice they get, as well as protection from
political pressure.
Method: Operating departments survey
prospective personnel needs and work
with the central agency to establish
standards, tests and appropriate elig
ible lists to meet prospective operat
ing needs.
FLEXIBILITY . . .
Restrictive rules, reluctance to con
sult with appointing officers, and con
tinual ignoring of their needs are no
longer part of modern practice. Liaison
and understanding enable the modern
merit system to meet the requirements
of appointing officers as they arise,
with sufficient flexibility to furnish
round pegs for round holes and square
pegs for square holes.
Method: Selective certification under
proper safeguards is a modern prac
tice for solving an old basic difficul
ty in civil service employment. For
merly the top three eligibles on a
general list were often Certified to
appointing officers, even for a spe
cialized job. For instance, an appoint
ing officer might need a public re
lations expert with particular knowl
edge of taxation problems. Under
the old practice he would often be
forced to select an individual with
general public relations experience
but without necessary knowledge of
taxation matters. A modern civil ser
vice commission can certify, from a
general register, the highest eligibles
thereon who have had actual exper
ience in the specialty needed. Time is
saved. Friction is avoided. It is no
longer necessary to go through the
time-consuming process of holding
an expensive special examination
when there are already, somewhere
on the general register, a number of
qualified specialists.