MR ALLEN'S CHARGE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23492, 5 May 1938, Page 12

MR ALLEN'S CHARGE

LABOUR'S CAUCUS METHODS APPOINTMENTS TO STAFF VACANCIES "A PROMISE TO THE MINISTER " Strong condemnation of the Labour council's methods of making appointments to fill staff vacancies was expressed by Mr A. H. Allen, a candidate for the city mayoralty, at his meeting at Tainui last evening. These methods were leading to political patronage and undermining the good administration of the corporation, he said; and he gave an example of what he described as the " farcical system " of deciding upon appointments. Before the advent of the Labour council aopointments of senioi officers to the staff were made by the council, Mr Allen said, but appointments of juniors were entrusted to the departmental heads in conjunction with the town clerk. " Now not even the town clerk mav select an office boy," he said. " This is an unwise policy, for departmental heads are surely better qualified than are councillors to determine which applicant has the best qualifications for their particular requirements. This interference has led to political patronage and will do so to an increasing degree if it is not abolished. A continuance of this policy will lead also to an undermining of the authority of the departmental heads and the good administration of our corporation generally." Example of London In support of this opinion, he quoted from the standing orders of the London County Council: (282) "Applicants for employment under the council shall not in any case or under any circumstances canvass members of the council or ask from them letters of introduction or recommendation. To canvass a member or to obtain from him a letter of introduction or recommendation to any officer of the council shall be held to disqualify an applicant." Mr Allen went on to say that Mr Herbert Morrison, M.P., the present chairman of the London County Council, in an article published in Public Administration of January, 1936, commented on this as follows:—"The system of recruitment under the council is carefully worked out to prevent the use of undue influence. The whole machine is designed and the whole of the Standing Orders are designed to secure the best possible officers, and to reduce the possibilities of undue influence or jobbery to the absolute minimum. I have told the members on my side of the council that they must never write to a chief officer or see him asking for some particular applicant to have a job. I have told the chief officers that they must not listen to members if they do so make application. I get letters every day asking for jobs, and they sometimes remind me that they voted for me at the last election. They all get precisely the same answer —that it is contrary to the Standing Order of the council for members to intervene with a view to the appointment of particular persons to jobs on the council, We try to get the best people and it is so absurd to interfere on behalf of particular applicants. It only means than some person has got the job instead of somebody else; and a person who uses political means to secure a job is often the last person who ought to enter the service." "A Promise to the Minister" "When applications for a vacancy on the council's staff were received during this council's control, it has been customary to appoint a small sub-committee to recommend to the council a limited number from the most suitable applicants," Mr Allen said. "The council then went through the formalities of a ballot until that number was reduced to one, although we all knew that the ultimate appointee had been decided upon at a caucus meeting and the ballot was a purely formal matter—in other words, a farce. "Last month, when there was a vacancy on the staff for our public conveniences, an injured man from another department was recommended for the position by our chief sanitary inspector. It has rightly been our custom to give preference to the members of our staff when making such appointments, but on this occasion the General Committee, with a Labour majority, appointed an outsider because, as the Mayor said, 'We gave a promise to the Minister that we would find a position for this man.' Are the interests of our own staff to be subordinated to the requirements of Cabinet Ministers? " Mr Allen asked in conclusion. " I object to our City Council being made part of a political machine." (Applause.)