CO885-(18-19) — Page 668

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

TIC.O.885

19 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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I

CROWN AGENTS'. ENQUIRY COMMITTEE:

40. In the Home Civil Service there are two main methods of recruiting and organising the staff of an office which, like the Crown Agents', performs a large amount of routine work.

41. According to the first method, the staff above the temporary Boy Clerks consists of a triple establishment comprising:-—

(1) A few Class I. Clerks, by whom as a rule all superior posts are filled. (2) Second Division Clerks, from whom a considerable number of staff posts are filled, and

(3) Abstractors or Assistant Clerks who have a chance of promotion to the Second Division.

42. The second method is to have a dual establishment consisting of

(1) Junior Appointments recruited by an examination intermediate in character between that for Class I. and that for Second Division Clerkships, and

(2) Abstractors or Assistant Clerks.

In a department of this class superior posts aro filled by promotion from the Junior Appointments.

43. The Committee do not consider that the nature of the work of the Crown Agents' Office requires the appointment of Class I. Clerks, and it appears to them that the second scheme, or some modification of it, is the more suitable.

44. Under this scheme, which is in force in the Supply and Accounting Departinents of the Admiralty, the Army Accounts Department, the Royal Ordnance Factories, the Exchequer and Audit Department, and the Estate Duty Office, candidates who have usually received a good grammar school or secondary school education enter for the Junior Appointments examination between the ages of 18 and 194. On appointment. they commence with a salary of £100 a year, rising to a maximum of £350 in that class and beyond this have the possibility of promotion to the highest appointments in the Department.

45. The scales in force for the higher grades in the Departments mentioned above could very well be applied to the superior ranks in the Crown Agents' Office, viz., Heads of Department and Deputy Heads. But the difficulty of dealing with the Office on ordinary Civil Service lines is the existence of the Class IV. Supplementary Clerks introduced in 1901. These start approximately on the Second Division scale, and rise to £250 a year, but-unlike the Second Division-have no prospects of increments beyond £250, unless they are exceptionally promoted to It is inadvisable that these clerks should be converted into Second Class III. Division Clerks. In the first place more than half of them are engaged on work which is within the capacity of Abstractors, and in the second place the existence of Junior Appointments and Second Division Clerks in the same office would certainly lead to difficulties.

There is, however, a convenient way of dealing with this problem. Assuming that the lowest established class in the Office is to consist of Assistant Clerks (Abstractors), it is desirable to hold out to them some prospect of promotion other than by elevation to the Junior Appointments class, which must be rare, and this result can be secured by retaining the Supplementary Clerks of Class IV. as an intermediate grade.

46. The following are the recommendations of the Committee on this subject:-

Established Officers.

(1) The Committee propose that a new Class V. should be constituted and manned by Abstractors who would be recruited and paid as in the case of the present Abstractors of the Civil Service. The scale of salary of this class is £55 by annual increments of £5 to £150 a year, with an efficiency bar at £100.

(2) The existing Class IV. Clerks should be established as such on a definite scale, which the Committee suggest might be fixed at £70 a year, rising by annual increments of £7 108. to £100, and then by increments of £10 to £180. Here there should be an efficiency bar, after passing which the clerk would continue to rise by £10 a year to a maximum of £250.

REPORT.

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(3) Class IV. should in future not be recruited directly, but as vacancies in it occur Abstractors should as a rule be appointed to Class V. until the number of Class IV. has fallen to half of the number of Abstractors. This proportion should be retained, and any further vacancies in Class IV. should be filled by promoting Abstractors from Class V. strictly by merit. Abstractors so promoted would enter Class IV. at their existing salaries, if not less than the minimum of the scale for that class.

(4) Clerks of Class JV. should be eligible for promotion to Class III. and thence to higher posts. But not more than half the vacancies in Class III. should be so filled.

(5) Not less than half the vacancies in Class III. should be filled by open competitive examination under the Junior Appointments scheme. No fixed proportion need be laid down but one half should be the minimum.

(6) As reductions consequent on the Committee's recommendations are effected in Class IV. by the substitution of Class V. Clerks, the number of Class III. posts might probably be increased to some small extent with advantage.

(7) Class III. posts would be on the following scale :-

For two years on probation at £100 a year. Then £120 rising by £10 a year to £200, where there should be an efficiency bar. Then the salary would rise by annual increments of £15 to £350 a year. Clerks promoted from Class IV. to Class III. would enter at their existing salaries if not less than the minimum of £100.

(8) Posts above Class III. should be graded as follows:-

Deputy Heads (Class 11.), £350 by annual increments of £15 to £500. Hends of Departments (Class I.), £550 by £20 annually to £700. The officer holding the position of Chief Clerk should receive in addition a pensionable allowance of £150 a year.

Posts in these classes should as a rule be filled by promotion from Class III. strictly according to merit.

(9) The existing staff of Lady Clerks should be left as they are at present. New entrants should be admitted by open competition under the scheme in force for the General Post Office, and their salaries should be the same, viz.: £65 by £5 annually to £110-then an efficiency bar-and then annual increments of £5 to £140; Deputy Heads £150 rising to £190 by annual increments of £10; and Heads £200, rising by similar increments to £210.

(10) As regards the Technical Officers (of the Works, Engineering, and Inspection Departments), we understand that similar posts are satisfactorily filled in various Government Departments by competitive examination, and we are aware of nothing in the service of the Crown Agents which would render such a method of appointment as a rule unsuitable.

staff.

The Technical Staff should be separately graded, and not merged in the clerical As the higher posts are comparatively few, the maximum of the salaries of the Assistants might be somewhat raised.

The following scales are suggested :-

Engineering Assistants-

Deputy Heads

Heads -

Minimum

Annual

Maximum

salary.

increment,

salary.

£

£

£

250

10

400

400

15

550

600

25

800

Officers of the Technical Staff should be subject to ordinary Civil Service conditions as regards pensions.

Unestablished Officers.

(11) Temporary Boy Clerks obtained as required from the Civil Service Com- mission should be employed as hitherto. If the Treasury scheme now under con- sideration for remodelling the Boy Clerks and Abstractors service comes into effect, a considerable proportion of the Boy Clerks now employed will have to be replaced by Abstractors. Otherwise the Boy Clerks should be left on their present scales.

(12) In order to meet any special pressure of work, the Department should be allowed to obtain from the Civil Service Commissioners the temporary services of Second Division Clerks under the arrangement adopted in the Civil Service, including an agreement with the Treasury for a payment based on actuarial calculations in con- sideration of the proportion of increment and pension earned by such clerks while in Colonial employment.

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