Page. TABLES OF STATISTICS. [Period covered is the fiscal year ended June 30, 1918, unless otherwise stated.] TABLE 1. The number of examinations of each kind, the number of persons examined, and the number appointed, with the number that passed during the preceding year... TABLE 2. The apportionment of appointments in the departmental service at Washington, D. C., from July 16, 1883, to September 30, 1918, with special reference to war-time appointments............. TABLE 3. The number examined, the number that passed, the per cent that passed, the number appointed, the per cent appointed of those that passed, and the approximate number of competitive classified positions in the service during the several periods covered by the reports of the commission, for all branches of the classified serv- THIRTY-SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE UNITED STATES CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION. WASHINGTON, D. C., November 15, 1919. SIR: The merit system of appointment demonstrated its vitality through the war period. It promoted the coordination of the civil and military branches, conduced greatly to efficiency and economy in administration, aided powerfully in procuring the best-qualified persons willing to serve the Government, and checked abuses in appointments. EXAMINATIONS AND APPOINTMENTS. The magnitude of the work of the commission during the war period is illustrated in the following table, showing the extent of certain parts of its work just preceding, during, and following the war: It will be observed that the examination standards were not seriously lowered during the war, as the percentage of those that passed the examinations was no greater than in 1916. It will also be seen that the number appointed in 1917 was more than twice that in in 1916, and the number appointed in 1918 was two and one-half times greater than in 1917 and five times greater than in 1916. Because of lack of sufficient force of employees, no compilation showing the number of persons employed by the Government during the war has been possible, and it seems doubtful whether more than an approximation can ever be made on account of heavy turnover. The competitive classified force of the navy yard service on April 1, 1917, was approximately 21,000, and on July 1, 1918, approximately 100,000. Between the same dates, the Ordnance Depart ment of the Army increased from 10,000 to 40,000, excluding employees of contractors doing Government work under Government supervision. Some branches of the civil service increased from a mere handful to many thousands, and new ones were necessitated. The demand for employees did not cease suddenly with the signing of the armistice. The Ordnance Department of the Army was practically the only branch of the service which was in a position to decrease its force immediately. The armistice did not at once decrease the size of the Army; and the maintenance of an army on foreign soil, the problems of demobilization, accounting, and the completion of records caused increases in some branches. The decrease in civilians at Washington was unnoticeable until the latter part of the fiscal year just ended, the reduction due to the cessation of war activities having been offset by resumption of work suspended during the war and by the mass of afterwar work. The reduction has been more noticeable recently. The War Department reduced its force at Washington more than 40 per cent during the year following the armistice. The following is an approximate statement of the number of civilian Federal employees of all kinds in Washington on certain dates: The following table shows the number of competitors examined for the classified and unclassified services and the number appointed, transferred, promoted, and reinstated on certificate of the commission during the fiscal years 1918 and 1919: These figures are subject to correction, as partial reports only have been received of examinations and appointments at navy yards. EXCEPTIONS FROM EXAMINATION. Notwithstanding the pressure for appointments, exceptions from examination other than those made by act of Congress have been confined for the most part to positions for which competition was either unnecessary or impractical. The reasons for exceptions made by Executive order are stated in the appendix to this report in connection with the orders, and these exceptions form a very trifling percentage of the whole number of appointments. Competition in appointment has been the rule, and the exception to this rule has been practically confined to the comparatively small number of cases demanding it. TEMPORARY APPOINTMENTS. The war, of course, greatly disturbed the stability of the force in the classified service and a large increase in the number of temporary appointments was unavoidable. The commission had the cooperation of the military departments in securing the observance of the rules in the making of such appointments and in limiting their number to the needs of the service. Appointments of this kind, however, are allowed only where the duration of the employment is too brief to warrant regular appointment or where the commission is unable to supply eligibles in season from its registers. In this latter case a temporary appointment is allowed until eligibles can be supplied. The relative number of temporary appointments as compared to probational appointments was, of course, considerably greater than in normal times, largely because the Government, in its desire to keep the public debt as low as possible, could not compete with private employers in the matter of compensation and also because of unsatisfactory living conditions found in places where there was great Government activity, especially at Washington. Since the armistice many of the temporary appointments have been in the War Department in professional and technical positions for duty in the adjustment of contracts and claims and the disposal of property and supplies. These appointments have usually continued for six months or less, but have in some instances been extended for a period in excess of six months. In the War Department temporary appointments have also been authorized for the completion of work upon which the appointee was engaged while a commissioned officer. The number of temporary appointments in clerical positions has been unduly large, owing to the improper practice of various departments of calling for stenographers and typewriters to fill positions whose duties are wholly or in large part merely clerical. For the past two years the supply of stenographer and typewriter eligibles has not been equal to the demand, and it has, therefore, been necessary to authorize temporary appointments of stenographers and typewriters outside the register, pending certification of eligibles for permanent appointment. Temporary appointments in clerical and technical positions have been necessary in many instances on account of the resignation on short notice of permanent employees after a brief period of service. These appointments have continued, however, only for a short time. The armistice had the effect of increasing the number of temporary appointments, particularly in the field service of the War Department, in positions not technical or professional, the appointing officers not desiring to make probational appointments in positions which would soon cease to exist, owing to the cessation of hostilities. As in the past, temporary appointments have been authorized in various positions to terminate in accordance with the civil-service rules when selection can be made from registers established as the result of appropriate examinations. TURNOVER IN THE CIVIL SERVICE. The war gave emphasis to the difficulty constantly experienced in securing and retaining competent employees. The rotation in office which critics of the merit system formerly said was insufficient has become increasingly frequent and vitally impairs the efficiency of the service. During the war period, however, there was a lower rate of turnover, at least in the mechanical forces, than in outside establishments. The proportion of separations, however, is excessive in clerical, professional, and technical positions, especially in the latter two, in which the rate of turnover sometimes amounts to a third of the force in a year. This serious loss of valuable employees, who have acquired experience and become useful, is due to their leaving to go into outside employment largely because of the lack of opportunity in the Government service. The higher positions, such as chiefs of bureaus, are rarely filled by promotions, not having |