Civil Service Active in Pay Raises
and New Appointments
Employees of the Civil Service office
are now preparing entrance examina
tions for state positions. Examinations
have hot been prepared for all classifica
tions and conditional employees are
still being appoionted pending the com
pletion of examinations. Robert R.
Johnson, Director of Civil Service, in
an August letter“ to department and
institution heads explained that "eligible
lists will be set up class by class in the
order of greatest need. As lists are es-
tablished they must be used in all fu
ture appointments to positions in such
classes . . . Before holding an examina
tion for any class, discussions will be
held w ith appointing authorities con
cerned, looking toward the development
of sound and effective testing and cer
tification methods.”
During the month of July 707 new
appointments were made, of which 606
were conditional employees. O f the 545
new employees hired in Aughst, 460
Were conditional appointments.
Other interesting .statistics ate tabu
lated. from personnel actions handled
-by the Civil Service office. D uring July
and August, 261 employees received
promotions, 86 retired, and 828 re
signed.
Employees Upgraded
In July approximately 900 state em
ployees received pay increases. Of
these, 15 5 were given to employees who
were promoted to highr classificationSi
The other 7 5.0 were increases within
the newly established salary ranges of
the present classifications for these em
ployees.
During August approximately 180
more -employees received raises. Promo
tions were earned by 106. Thus, during
these two months 11 per cent of , the
total 8,000 state employees received
increases* It is a special satisfaction t o ’
those who worked for the state in the
non-uniform days before Civil Service
to see this evidence of a definite pay
plan in operation.
~ All of | the employees who w e r e
raised to their minimum salaires on
March 1 will be eligible for a six-
month merit increase on September 1.
It is general practice in the various
departments to give this consideration
at-six-m onth periods. N ot all eligibles
will receive increases, however, because
they will be recorded to employees on
the basis of merit* Employees who have
been with a department thelongest and
whose work merits recognition will in
all fairness receive raises ^before newer
employees.
Pay Scherules Difficult
This ..is one of the most < difficult
salary problems in adjusting à new pay
schedule. In some situations, employees
long in the. service of a .department
receive jno more than newer workers
whom they are instructing on’the job.
When the minimum and first-step sal
aries of the men and women who .have
béen many years, iti state ' service are
advanced in relation to those of newer
workers, a long. step, will have been
taken toward smoother relations be
tween employees and between adminis
trators and employees.
Another consideration also enters the
picture. The number of salary increases
in any'one department is in part, influ
enced by the funds available in the
departnrent’s biennial budget. This fi
nancial consideration is not under the
jurisdiction of the Civil Service Com
mission.
A man went to work for a large
corporation. W ith his first pay check
he observed a deduction with the nota
tion, "F IT .” Returning to; the pay
master he sought an explanation. "I
don’t recall,” said the man with a some
w hat .heavy attem pt at humour, "hav
ing had a fit.”
"O h, yes,” replied the paymaster
earnestly; "everybody has fits every
pay day, because alt of them have fed
eral income ta x ! ”