Ever since Confucius gave the idea to the Chinese, governments in various ways have been making their civil servants take examinations to get their jobs.* Last week Director Harold Stassen of the Foreign Operations Administration introduced a variation of this principle. He gave 1,700 employees a sweeping set of intelligence tests, to help determine which 400 should be fired.
Stassen planned the tests as an "objective indication of ability" after Congress, in cutting FOA's appropriation, had given him blanket authority to disregard civil service regulations, seniority, or even veterans' preference in pruning his staff. Clerical staff members ($3,000 a year...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
