SETTLEMENT OF TRADE DISPUTES OF MERCHANTS Mr. CARR. Lest you get a wrong impression from something that Mr. Dumont said, the percentage that he gave of the communications from his office to the field which related to the Department of Commerce and the Department of State, respectively, was based purely upon the commercial work which passes through his office. Mr. DUMONT. That is commercial work. Mr. CARR. That has nothing to do with the innumerable other things that relate to other branches of the State Department's work. Mr. GRIFFIN. This relates to trade protection and trade promotion? Mr. DUMONT. Yes, sir; and to trade disputes. For instance, there are referred to us many disputes between our merchants and foreign merchants as to payments involving, perhaps, $100, $1,000, $3,000, or $6,000. Those disputes come to us. Mr. GRIFFIN. They are brought to your attention through the Department of Commerce. Mr. DUMONT. Yes, sir. When a business man goes to the Department of Commerce with a case, they usually transfer it to my office, and we issue the order to the consul. Mr. GRIFFIN. That answers my previous question with regard to the business men of the country having been educated to the point where they rely upon the Department of Commerce for this service. Mr. DUMONT. They say frankly that they are trying to educate the business men up to that point. PAY COMPARISONS OF CLERKS OF STATE AND COMMERCE DEPARTMENTS ABROAD Mr. OLIVER. In that connection, you might furnish some selected points where they maintain offices. It would not be necessary to give more than 8, 10, or 12 outstanding points; and then you can make a comparison of the pay of those in your employ with the pay of those in the employ of the Department of Commerce. Mr. DUMONT. I can not make the comparison between the pay of the employees of the two departments because we do not have the information relating to the Department of Commerce. We can furnish the information as to what it costs us and refer you to figures in the 1928 Budget showing what the Department of Commerce has in that respect. Comparative statement of the pay received by clerks employed abroad by the Departments of State and Commerce Berlin Romre Cape Town Melbourne Singapore Madrid Hamburg Caracas Riga Brussels Amount Number A mount Number Amount Number Amount Number Amount Number Amount Number Amount Number Amount The Budget, 1928, shows the average clerical salary paid in both diplomatic and consular branches of the Foreign Service compared with the average paid in the Foreign Commerce service as follows: State Department, $1,218, Commerce Department, $2,539. The average salary for the State Department Foreign Service is but 47.9 per cent of that paid by the Commerce Department. The 1928 Budget for the current fiscal year also includes a total lump sum appropriation of $178,800 for local employees without restriction as to maximum salaries paid individual employees of offices of commercial attachés and trade commissioners. This total lump sum is in addition to regular clerk hire. The estimates of the State Department include no lump sum items. The data on which the foregoing is based are the following: Clerks for commercial attachés (the compensation of a clerk or clerks for each commercial attaché at the rate not to exceed $3,000 per annum). Salary range, $2,400 to $3,000; average, $2,700. Salary range, $2,400 to $3,000; average, $2,700 Salary range, $2,400 to $3,000; average, $2,700. Promoting commerce in the Far East: Clerks for trade commissioners. Local employees, the lump sum of $30,000. Enforcement of the China Trade Act: Clerk for trade commissioner. 1 2,400 Local employees, the lump sum of $3,800. Summary: Total, 34 clerks; average salary, $2,539 plus a total lump sum granted for local employees without restriction as to maximum salaries paid individual employees, $178,800. Clerks at embassies and legations: Typical instances are cited below to demonstrate the effect worked by the inferior clerical salaries paid in the consular branch of the Foreign Service as compared with salaries paid similar employees in the offices of commercial attachés and trade commissioners who are not restricted by the $1,000 limitation contained in the act of 1906. (1) Telegram from the American Consul General, Zurich, Switzerland, dated October 10, 1927: 'Clerk Moussman contemplating accepting tentative offer of employment at $1,200 by our commercial attaché at Berne who properly consulted with me before approaching her in response to her application. She is highly important assistant to consulate general and loyal to it but can not live properly on $960." (2) Dispatch from the American Consul. at Amsterdam, Netherlands, dated October 3, 1927: * * The resignation of Mr. Surig is closely linked up with that of Mr. Cornelius Gorter who resigned on April 30, 1926. Both of these men had had considerable experience in this office and were most valuable to us at the time of their departure. Mr. Gorter was most able in commercial work, having on a number of occasions prepared reports almost entirely upon his own initiative. Mr. Surig entered the service of the consulate as office boy and was promoted to junior clerk three years ago. At the time of his departure he was a most efficient stenographer in the visa department and constantly striving to improve himself by private study. At the time Mr. Gorter left he was earning $900 per annum, very close to the maximum allowed for foreign clerks employed by the State Department. Mr. Surig had recently been promoted from $600 to $660 per year and this office looked forward to retaining his services for a number of years. Both of these men resigned to accept positions in the office of the commercial attaché at the American Legation at The Hague. Mr Gorter was offered $1,200 per year and has in the past year been increased to $1,500. This is more than 50 per cent above the maximum amount which the consulate can pay Dutch clerks. Mr. Surig, offered $960 per annum, receives at the age of 21 the same salary which this office pays to the older clerks longest in its employ, the maximum available.” (3) Dispatch from the American consul general at Oslo, Norway, dated September 15, 1927: "In connection with the report that a commercial attaché will be appointed to Oslo in the near future, rumors have reached members of the staff of this consulate general to the effect that a number of clerks will be needed at appreciably higher salaries than those paid by this office, inasmuch as the Department of Commerce is not limited to $80 a month in employing foreign clerks. * * * It seems to me that the disadvantage under which the Foreign Service works in regard to the payment of foreign clerks should be remedied, if possible." It should be remarked that this comparison does not apply only to the Department of Commerce but also to other executive departments having offices abroad such as Treasury, Agriculture, and Labor. These, notably the Treasury, have been successful in obtaining the service of foreign clerks trained in consular offices but to whom the consular branch could not pay, because of the statutory restriction, salaries in excess of $1,000 per annum. Thus the Consular Service suffers a detriment in favor of other executive departments due to the discrimination worked by the act of 1906. CONTINGENT EXPENSES, UNITED STATES CONSULATES Mr. SHREVE. The next item is contingent expenses, United States Consulates. Your current appropriation for this purpose is $970,000 and for 1929 you are estimating $1,035,000. I presume that this increase in the contingent expenses, amounting to $65,000, is largely brought about by the act of May 7, 1926, which includes the care and supervision of buildings. Mr. CARR. There is actually no amount of money involved in this because of that act. We wrote that language in here so as to have it exactly like the diplomatic appropriation. Mr. SHREVE. This would give you authority to use the money for that purpose, would it not? Mr. CARR. Yes, sir; but we do not have any amount included here that would be expended in that way. I will tell you frankly the reason for this change in the wording of the appropriation: We had the contingent expense item for foreign missions changed because we asked the specific amount of $46,000 for the maintenance of certain embassies and legations, and we thought that it would be well at the same time to ask Congress to change the wording of the appropriation for contingent expenses of consulates so that we would have the two contingent funds on exactly the same basis. Next year, I think, we will propose a combination of those two appropriations into one. |