Image provided by: SEIU Local 503; Salem, OR
About The Oregon state employee. (Salem, Oregon.) 1944-195? | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 1947)
4 thus assuring all employees of equal and impartial consideration, regardless- of the department or, service in which; they are employed. 13> Administrators could assume more? personal responsibility in selecting and Recommending; employees for retirement action or retention^ action. This, of course, would put the administrator "on the spot” with some empjdyees and others, but administrators -are normally expected to know their employees and their abilities; They alSo, should be thoroughly acquainted with and mind ed to comply with the Retirement - L'ayr and thus administer it* properly; and with justice. Their positions in state, .service warrant such action in a manner .which will command respect, . 4. Employees should have. reason to have confidence .in the judgment of their administrators and should respect their decisions. 5. Retiring employees; should sub merge personal desires in deference to the future benefits to their successors. Individual opinions should yield , to . the majority. 6. E m p l o y e e s and administrators alike should foster a spirit of mutual respect one for another and should become better acquainted with and ap preciative of the problems of each.. Liberalization of Act Is Desirable The - Oregon Retirement Act, .as passed in 1945, „is a compromise meas sure. It is not as desired by the O.S.E.A. and other supporters. It is a compromise measure solely because custodians of state funds were fearful that the'state, in it's poor financial condition,9 could not bear its share of the money cost. The" potential value to public -service cannot be measured in dollars, so pvas entirely ignored in equating dollar cost with increased production and effic iency. Thus, all employees, and especial ly those who retire during the first few years of its operation have been denied the full benefits which a just .system would normally provide retiring -employees. The blame here rests either on misjudgment of the state’s financial condition or On the poor financial con dition itself! The aqt should'be liberalized at least in the following respects*-'to give' credit for a'll-service rendered prior to July 1, 1946p‘€6 proyide for state matching of an employee’s contributions on the full amount of his pay; and to permit in vestment of the funds collected in higher yielding, yet safe, ^securities. The O.S.E.A. has consistently striven to have deficiencies in the act corrected, both in 1945 and 1947. We will con tinue to- press for proper action at every opportunity. I Benefits Will Increase /*A s the A ct becomes more fair in its terms, waK increasingly fulfill, its mission -of improving the/^q eieu ey of state ^’governmental functions. As the spirit and efficiency of employees Jim- prgyl||? governmental services will re turn increasing dividends-.td.Rh^.publiy. which supports them.. The Retirement System is; a good investment for the state, its* employpes? and 'tjhe public. MAGAZINE FOR CITIZENS Designed-to aw.aken citizen interest in the many plans and activities of local government, a new monthly- magazine, Citizen, has appeared on the British scene.. The artuilfes'm this ."journal of civic affairs” describe and explain, such local government functipns.ias street lighting, district, heating, schools, health services, city planning, and housing. The purposes of, this new British magazine are to ; explain local govern ment activities* and tosdCureicitizen in terest; and participation in local de mocracy— a purpose to be commended. That such an undertaking can also be a success is- evidenced by I the fact that n h e w irst RsSues of the magazine were'sold out within-a very short time, and paper limitations allows the pub lishers-to satisfy only a part of a great public demand.1. I American City, March, 1947. "When all is said and done,” usually a;-good deal more was said than done.
