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since government traditionally has tended to establish certain minimum standards for employment?

Comparison of the salaries presented in this table with Federal salaries indicates that: (1) The present average ($51 a week) and the minimum pay scale ($48 a week) for CAF-3's in the Federal service are generally above the average for general stenographers in private industry. (2) So far as technical stenographers are concerned, pay scales in private industry are on the average higher than those in the government in some cities; for example, in west coast cities, in New York, in Chicago, and in New Orleans. (3) There is a narrower spread in salaries in the Federal Government than in private industry. As the following tabulation indicates, very substantial proportions of technical stenographers in private industry received more than the maximum of about $57.50 a week established for the GS-3 grade in the Federal service (and the maximum of $56.50 now in effect for CAF-3's).

Percent of workers in private industry receiving above the maximum of the proposed Federal GS-3 scale

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It should be emphasized that Federal salaries for the lower paid clerical jobs have traditionally been higher than the average in private industry and that the relationship between private industry and government salaries is apparently reversed for the higher paid classifications.

A survey made by the Personnel Classification Board of the Civil Service Commission in 1929 (70th Cong., 2d sess., H. Doc. No. 602) stated, "The outstanding fact disclosed by the comparison is that while the Government rates for positions in the clerical, administrative, and fiscal service are comparatively liberal in the lower grades, the difference is less in each successive grade and it entirely disappears in grade 4. From that point on the non-Government rates are increasingly liberal.

* * *

"In the higher types of employment the salary schedules are so regularly accelerated above Government pay that one might infer that in general industry greater recognition is given to administrative ability than in the Government. The report also states, "There is probably a higher proportion of the lower grade employees entering the Government who leave their home towns and residence with their parents than is the case with those entering commercial work. It is also probably true that in the commercial world full advantage is taken of the fact that a certain percentage of employees live at home. * * Considerable

*

weight must be given to the necessity for providing a living wage, or a wage that will enable the employee working in the Government to provide independently for himself those reasonable necessaries of life which will enable him to maintain himself without aid from other sources."

Should you have any questions regarding these materials, please do not hesitate to let us know.

Very truly yours,

EWAN CLAGUE, Commissioner of Labor Statistics

Weekly salaries 1

Weekly salaries of women stenographers in private industry in 13 cities

Boston

Chicago

Denver

Los Angeles

New Orleans

New York

General Technical General Technical General Technical General Technical General Technical General Technical General Technical stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog- stenog. raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers raphers

Atlanta

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1

Weekly salaries 1 of women stenographers in private industry in 13 cities-Continued

Portland, Oreg.

Richmond

St. Louis

Techni

cal ste-
nogra-
phers

San Francisco

General stenog

raphers

Technical stenographers 4

Techni

General

ca! ste

stenog

raphers

nographers 4

General stenographers

Average weekly salaries 1

$40.00

$46.50

$45.00

$42.50

Salary range of middle 50 percent of workers.

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1 Excluding pay for overtime. Information refers to January-March 1949 except for Denver and San Francisco, where it refers to January-February 1948. Insufficient number of workers to justify presentation of distribution.

Less than five-hundredths of one percent.

Insufficient number of workers to warrant presentation of information.

Hon. RUSSELL B. LONG,

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR,
BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS,
Washington, May 17, 1949.

United States Senate, Washington, D. C.

MY DEAR SENATOR LONG: In accordance with your request at the hearing May 9 on reclassification of Federal positions proposed by S. 1762, the average annual salary of Federal classified employees who were working in the respective periods August 1939 and July 1948 rose from $1,994 to $3,352, or by 68.1 percent. This increase reflects the shift from a preponderance of low-grade clerical jobs in 1939 to a much higher proportion of jobs in highly paid scientific and technical work in 1948 as well as the salary-rate increases of 1945, 1946, and 1948. The increase of 46.6 percent which I quoted in my testimony eliminates the influence of occupational shifts and reflects only the salary-rate increases. The 68.1-percent increase is a better figure for computing the increase in aggregate pay-roll costs, but the 46.6-percent increase reflects more accurately the salary-rate increases granted to the individual employee.

I am always glad to be of service and hope you will not hesitate to call upon me at any time I may be of assistance. Very truly yours,

EWAN CLAGUE,

Commissioner of Labor Statistics.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR,

BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS,

Washington, May 18, 1949.

Mr. GROVER W. ENSLEY,

Technical Adviser to Senator Flanders,

Committee on Post Office and Civil Service,
United States Senate, Washington, D. C.

DEAR MR. ENSLEY: As requested in your letter of May 9 addressed to Harry Ober, of my staff, we are enclosing two tables bringing up to date the data shown' on the table prepared for Senator Flanders last year.

Table 1 shows Federal salary rates in 1939 and at present, and those proposed by S. 1762. The stub items necessarily were changed because of the differences between the legislation proposed last year and that proposed this year.

For 1939 and recent periods, table 2 shows the average salary of Federal employees and of employees in selected private industries. Federal salaries are shown on this table on two bases: (1) the average for employees on the rolls as of July 1948, which reflects only salary-rate increases and eliminates the influence of occupational shifts; (2) the average for employees who were working in the respective periods, which reflects the shift from a preponderance of low-grade clerical jobs in 1939 to a higher proportion of jobs in high-paid scientific and technical work in 1948 as well as the salary-rate increases. You will recall that the latter average was requested of me by the subcommittee during my testimony. Data for two additional private industries, bituminous-coal mining and electric light and power, are shown. Wholesale trade, however, has been substituted for retail trade because of the problem of extensive part-time employment in retail trade and the resultant unrepresentativeness of fluctuations in average earnings. The conversion of private employees' earnings to an annual full-time basis is omitted, as data are unavailable beyond 1947. To a considerable extent, the average weekly earnings shown reflect the under-employment in each period as the averages were computed from aggregates which include part-time employment and wages.

A comparison of Federal and private stenographic salaries is in preparation for the subcommittee. When available, a copy will be sent to you.

If you have any questions, or if we may be of assistance at any time, please do not hesitate to let us know.

Very truly yours,

EWAN CLAGUE,

Commissioner of Labor Statistics.

TABLE 1.-Salary rates for classified Federal services as of 1939, the present, and as

proposed by S. 1762

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1 Employees now at the minimum for SP-1 would be placed at the $2,180 level. Employees now at the minimum of P-8 and CAF-15 would be placed at the proposed middle salary for this grade, $10,500.

CPC-1 originally was intended to be used for girls and boys under age 18 who were hired as messengers. It is used almost exclusively by the Office of Indian Affairs for teachers' spouses who cook and do clean up work. S. 1762 proposes that this grade be retained.

Source: U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 17, 1949).

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