Full text of Earnings and Wage Practices in Municipal Governments of 15 Cities, 1944 : Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, No. 848

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
L. B. Schwellenbach, S ecretary
BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS
Isador Lubin, Comm issioner (on leave)
A. F. Hinrichs, A ctin g Com m issioner

+

E a r n in g s

a n d

W a g e

M u n ic ip a l
o f

15

P r a c tic e s

in

G o v e rn m e n ts

C itie s ,

1944

Bulletin T^o. 848

For sale by the Superintendent o f Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office
Washington 25, D. C. - Price 10 cents







Letter o f Transm ittal
U nited States D epartment of L abor ,
B ureau of L abor Statistics,

Washington, D. C., September 10, 1945.
The Secretary of L abor :
I have the honor to transmit herewith a report on earnings and wage practices
in municipal governments of 15 cities, 1944. The report was prepared in the
Bureau’s Wage Analysis Branch by Carrie Glasser with the assistance of Marion
R. Callahan and Joseph H. Mayer. The survey on which this study was based
was planned and directed by Margaret L. Plunkett.
A. F. H inrichs, Acting Commissioner.
H on . L. B. Schwellenbach,




Secretary of Labor.




Contents
Page

Summary______________________________________________________________
Purpose and scope of survey____________________________________________
Method of analysis_____________________________________________________
Average hourly earnings____________
Estimated annual salaries_______________________________________________
Scheduled weekly hours of work_________________________________________
Intercity comparisons of wage levels_____________________________________
Wage increases since January 1941_______
Wage-payment practices:
Job-classification and salary plans_____________________________
Methods of wage payments_________________________________________
Administration of municipal employment systems:
Civil service systems______________________________
Pension funds__________________
Vacation and sick-leave policies_____________________________________
Tenure of office____________________________________________________
Union affiliation_________________________________

1
2
4
5
9
10
10
11
12
13
14
14
15
15
15

LIST O T B E
P ALS
Table 1.— Estimated municipal employment and percent of employees cov­
ered in 15 cities included in Bureau’s survey, summer of 1944_________
Table 2.— Average hourly earnings of employees in 15 municipal govern­
ments, selected occupations, by sex, June 1944-----------------------------------Table 3.— Indexes of rank of 15 municipal governments, by level of annual
and hourly wage rates in selected occupations, June 1944______________
Table 4.— Estimated average annual salaries of employees in 15 municipal
governments, selected occupations, by sex, June 1944-------------------------Table 5.— Salary ranges and step rates in basic compensation schedules
for municipal workers in St. Louis and Cincinnati, June 1944__________
Table 6.— Provisions of pension-fund systems in effect in 15 municipal
governments, June 1944--------------------------------------------------------------------Table 7.— Vacation and sick-leave policies of 15 municipal governments,
June 1944___________________________________________________________




(V)

2
6
11
17
20
24
26




B ulletin 7<[o. 848 o f the
U nited States B ureau o f Labor Statistics
[Reprinted from the Monthly Labor Review, August 1945, with additional material!

Earnings and Wage Practices in Municipal Governments
of 15 Cities, 1944
Sum m ary

Average hourly earnings of municipal employees in 74 occupations
in 15 municipal governments were obtained by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics for a single pay-roll period in 1944. On the basis of these
data estimates of annual earnings were made. The data revealed
considerable intercity variation in wages for identical occupational
groups as well as wide intracity differences in wages among groups
whose skills are comparable. The scheduled workweek varied some­
what less, both among cities and within any given city. An average
computed on the basis of data for all 15 cities showed that of 16 key
male occupations studied, senior civil engineers had the highest annual
salaries ($3,278) and janitors the lowest ($1,619). Secretaries showed
the highest salaries of 7 key female occupations ($2,007) and switch­
board operators the lowest ($1,510). The occupations included in
this survey did not include top professional and the higher-salaried
administrative personnel.
Oakland, Gary, and Portland (Oreg.) ranked highest with respect
to the general municipal wage level, while Atlanta, St. Louis, and a
southwestern city were the three lowest. The ranks of 7 cities with
respect to the wage levels of municipal employees and of employees
in private industry were observed to be substantially similar. It is
estimated that wages in the 15 cities increased approximately 10 to
15 percent between January 1941 and the date of the survey. This
resulted from upward revisions of wage scales and the payment of
cost-of-living bonuses.
Job-classification systems covering all or nearly all major groups of
municipal workers, were in effect in 12 of the 15 cities. Five cities
had uniform pay plans that classify jobs by grades, with a uniform
salary range for all jobs within a grade. Plans providing a single
minimum rate for each job class, but with varymg maximum rates,
were found in 6 other cities. Less formal wage plans were followed
in the remaining 4 cities. Although most municipal employees are
paid on a montmy or annual basis, a substantial number, particularly
in the craft and laborer classifications, are paid hourly or daily rates.
All but 3 of the 15 cities had civil service systems covering all
departments. Tenure of office in most cities was provided after a
6-month probationary period. Large numbers of municipal workers




(l)

2

were found to be members of unions but none of the municipal gov­
ernments had written contracts with unions.
P urpose and Scope o f Survey

The primary purpose of this survey was to obtain information
regarding wages of municipal workers in selected occupational groups.
The need for comprehensive and reliable data in this field has long
been recognized by city governments, planning agencies, labor organ­
izations, and others interested in public administration. It was in
appreciation of this need that the Bureau of Labor Statistics under­
took an experimental study in the summer of 1944. Information
regarding hours of work, merit systems, pension schemes and vacation
and sick-leave policies, was also collected in the course of this survey.
Fifteen cities were covered in this survey; 5 of the 15 have popula­
tions between 100,000 and 250,000, 7 are in the 250,000 to 500,000
population group, and 3 have populations between 500,000 and
1,000,000. Municipal employment in these cities ranged from 1,400
to 14,600. Table 1 shows the cities studied, arranged by size groups,
the approximate total number of municipal employees in each city
at the time of the Bureau’s survey, and the percentage of the employ­
ment covered by this survey.
T able 1.—Estimated Municipal Employment and Percent of Employees Covered in 15

Cities Included in Bureau9 Survey, Summer of 1944
s
Esti­
mated
total
munici­
pal em­
ploy­
ment,
summer
of 1944

Size group and city

100,000-250,000 population:
Flint, Minn
___ _
Gary, Tnd
. ._
Grand Rapids, Mir.h
Hartford, Conn
_______
Oklahoma City, Okla........
250,000-500,000 population:
City X I
Atlanta, Ga
Cincinnati, Ohio.................
i A southwestern city.

Percent
of total
em­
ployees
studied

2,700
1.900
1.900
3,100
1,400

41
19
34
34
54

4.600
4,100
8.600

25
43
33

Size group and city

250,000-500,000 population—Con.
Denver, Colo
_^
Oakland, Calif
Portland, Oreg___________
fit. Paul, Minn ___
500,000-1,000,000 population:
Buffalo, N. Y .......................
_
_ ___
Pittsburgh, Pa
St. Louis, Mo _ __ ___

Esti­
mated
Percent
total
munici­ of total
em­
pal em­
ploy­
ployees
ment,
studied
summer
of 1944

6,200
4,400
3,000
3,300

50
22
50
15

10,300
9,200
14,600

38
41
40

By request it is not identified by name in this study.

The selection of the 15 cities was guided by several considerations.
Because wages for the same occupation tend to vary among municipal
departments, cities with fairly diversified departmental organization
were desired in order to insure adequate coverage for the selected
occupational groups. This eliminated very small cities and accounts
for the concentration of the sample on cities of medium size.The very
largest cities in the country were omitted because of the experimental
nature of this survey. For each of the 15 cities selected, all regular
departments were included to the extent that they had the occupa­
tions selected for study. The major departmental divisions covered
were general government, public works, public-service enterprises,




3
parks and playgrounds, zoning and planning, sanitation, health, wel­
fare, protection, education, and libraries. It should be understood,
however, that certain functions were found in some city governments
but not in others. For example, Gary has no department of public
welfare but is serviced in this respect by the public welfare depart­
ment for Lake County. Likewise, Hartford and Oakland have no
municipal water departments of their own but receive this service
from public bodies which have jurisdiction over several municipalities.
The present survey included only those selected groups of employees
in city departments which were administratively a part of the munic­
ipal structure.1
The cities surveyed were also chosen with regard for geographical
representation. Thus, of the 15 cities covered, there is at least one in
each of the major geographic regions of the United States. The
selection was greatly aided by conferences held with representatives
of Federal, municipal, and union organizations interested in the
salaries of municipal employees and related problems. The mayors
and other officials of the 15 cities cooperated by placing at the dis­
posal of the Bureau’s representatives the necessary pay-roll and other
official records. The information for most cities covers the pay-roll
period for June 1944.2
The proportion of municipal employees covered in this survey, as
shown in table 1, ranged from 15 percent to more than 50 percent for
individual cities. This wide variation in coverage is due to several
factors. First, the survey excluded certain large groups of municipal
employees such as teachers, firemen, and policemen, as well as top
professional and administrative personnel. While these groups are
numerically large in all cities, they account for a considerably greater
proportion of total municipal employment in some cities than in
others. Second, part-time3 and temporary workers were also ex­
cluded and, as in the case of the first group, the proportionate impor­
tance of these workers varied from city to city. Third, the occupa­
tions selected for study were those which were numerically important
in the majority of cities and/or were representative of the different
skills and wage levels. When an occupational group appeared to be
of numerical importance in only a small number of cities, the group
was excluded from the sample.4 This resulted in greater loss of cov­
ered employees in some cities than in others.
Because the sample upon which this survey is based is limited to a
small number of cities and to selected occupations which exclude the
highest-paid personnel, the data are not considered to be representa­
tive of wage and employment conditions of municipal employees
throughout the country. This experimental study does, however,
yield useful information for those cities and occupations covered and
should provide a helpful basis for planning broader studies in the
future.
i An exception to this rule was made in the case of the education “ department” of Portland, which is
administered independently of the Portland city government and is part of the Multnomah County School
District.
» Exceptions were as follows: Atlanta, January 1944; Gary, October 1944; Hartford, April 1944; Portland,
July 1944. As there were no general wage changes effective between these dates and June 1944, the pay-roll
periods are comparable for purposes of this study.
* For purposes of this study a “ part-time” worker was considered to be an employee who regularly worked
less than the full number of hours in the normal day or workweek.
* For example, ambulance drivers and seamstresses were numerically significant groups in Atlanta and,
similarly, cashiers in Denver. However, since the great.majority of the cities covered did not show these
classifications, they were dropped from the sample.
669634°— 45------ 2




4
M ethod o f A nalysis

The survey covered 74 occupational groups of municipal employees
but in no one municipal government were all of these occupations
found. The highest representation was 66 for Denver; the lowest
was 31 for Gary, the smallest of the cities surveyed. The job titles
used in this study are not necessarily the same as those appearing on
the pay rolls of the individual cities. The standard job descriptions
developed by the Bureau after examination of job classifications used
in several cities were taken as a basis for classifying the municipal
employees covered. For example, an employee designated as a junior
engineering clerk in some cities was classified as a “ junior engineering
aide” if the functions and requirements of the job corresponded with
the standard job description used by the Bureau. Similarly, the desig­
nation “ janitor” was used for many employees listed as cleaners or
building custodians. In some instances it was found necessary to use
broader occupational groupings than in others. For example, all
stenographers were classified into one group, but typists were sub­
divided into junior and senior grades. Clerks were divided into four
grades: (a) “ General clerks” who perform simple routine tasks, (b)
“ senior clerks” who have more difficult tasks requiring the application
of judgment based on established precedents, (c) “ clerk supervisors”
who plan, assign and supervise the work of subordinate employees, and
(d) “ principal clerks” who generally supervise larger groups and have
greater opportunity for exercising independent judgment. Despite
some discrepancies caused by differences in job descriptions in the 15
cities, it is believed that the employment of the standard job classifi­
cation as a basis for grouping yielded satisfactory results.
Two measures of wages were developed in this survey— average
hourly earnings and estimated average annual salaries, both based,
with few exceptions, on pay-roll records for June 1944. The wage
data include the base pay for the regular workweek, plus cost-of-living
bonuses and length-of-service increments, wherever these were in
effect. Overtime pay for emergency work beyond the usual workweek
was not included, nor was premium pay for extra-shift operation, the
latter a relatively unimportant factor in municipal employment.
Indirect additions to income provided in the form of meals, lodging,
laundry, or other payments in kind, were not taken into account.
An exception to this rule was made wherever the workers in an occu­
pation had the option of taking the cash value of full or part mainte­
nance. In those instances in which all or a part of the group exercised
the option, the average rate for the occupation was considered to be
the average base rate plus the cash value of the maintenance. The
occupational groups that received maintenance allowances not in­
cluded in the computation of earnings are designated in table 2.
The statistics on annual salaries are estimates based on the single
pay period for each city. Although these figures are consequently
subject to some error, it is probably very small, since employment and
wage practices among municipalities show considerable stability.
The important salary-determining factors for which no allowance was
made include (1) overtime payments, (2) income received directly or
in kind for maintenance, (3) changes in base rates caused by individual
grade promotions, prior to or after the pay-roll period studied, or
Other reasons, (4) seasonal lay-offs or other periodic reductions in time




5
worked, (5) labor turn-over during the year, which could increase the
weight of employment at the lower limits of rate ranges within each
occupational group, and (6) reductions or extensions in the regular
workweek. Changes in the workweek would probably be of greater
significance for workers paid on an hourly basis, but would also affect
the earnings of some salaried employees.
The statistics of average hourly earnings and average annual
salaries for each occupation represent the average for that group in
all departments of a city in which the job was found. Since base rates
and weekly hours are often not identical in all departments of a city,
even for the same occupation, the city-wide averages do not necessarily
correspond exactly to the average wages in any particular department.
Average H ourly Earnings

Table 2 shows, by occupation, the average hourly earnings of male
and female employees in the 15 municipal governments for June 1944.
One outstanding characteristic is the wide variation among the 15
cities with respect to the earnings of the same occupational group.
For example, average hourly earnings of male laborers, an unskilled
group, ranged from 51 cents in Atlanta to 91 cents in Portland. For
janitors, another unskilled group, City X (a southwestern city) had the
lowest hourly earnings, 43 cents, and Portland the highest, 95 cents.
It is of interest to note that despite the difference in range, the rank
of the cities is approximately the same for both unskilled occupational
groups, with the southern cities reporting the lowest earnings and the
far western cities the highest. Because the sample used is small and
the period studied limited to 1 month, caution should be observed
in generalizing the relationships indicated by certain parts of the data.
Thus, although the southern cities had the lowest hourly earnings for
certain unskilled occupational groups, they held a higher rank in the
case of some skilled occupations. Atlanta, for example, showed the
fourth highest hourly earnings for general repairmen, while fifth place
was taken by Portland. For the same occupational group, Oklahoma
City reported the lowest hourly earnings (72 cents) and the midwestern city of Gary the highest ($1.35).
Wide differences in average hourly earnings among occupations of
similar skill grade within a given city are also indicated by the statistics
in table 2. In three cities (Atlanta, Oakland, and St. Louis) janitors
received higher hourly earnings than laborers, while in 11 cities the
opposite was true. In Hartford, laborers received, on the average, 3
percent more in hourly earnings than janitors; and in Grand Rapids,
the difference was almost 30 percent. With respect to certain skilled
categories, similar marked deviations from uniformity within the
same city were found.




6

T able 2.—Average Hourly Earnings 1 of Employees in 15 Municipal Governments,

Selected Occupations, By Sex, June 1944
Occupation and sex
Males
Account clerks................................................
Accountants (including supervisors).............
Attendants, hospital, etc.T............1.............
* utomotive mechanics................. ................ .
A
Blacksmiths_________ ____ _____ __________
Brickmasons.................................................
Building superintendents, sch ool.................
Carpenters, maintenance................................
Civil engineers, junior____________ .
Civil engineers^ senior...................................
Civil engineers, principal............. ............
Clerks, general.' ....... 1 . . . ________________
Clerks^ senior.......................................
Clerical supervisors, except principal............
Clerical supervisors, principal___ _________
Cooks......... ........................... .......
Draftsmen, junior.........................................
Draftsmen' senior...........................................
Electricians, maintenance............ ........ .........
Elevator operators______________
Engineering aides, junior____ ____ ______
Engineering aides, senior_________________
Equipment operators, heavy................... ......
Equipment operators, light............................
Food workers (except cooks)........ ........... .
Food workers, Hospital...........................
Food workers, other than hospital......... .
Foremen, labor (shop and field). ................
Guards and watchmen (other than prison)..
Guards...................................... ................
Watchmen____________ ________
Guards, prison........................................ ......
Helpers, "any craft___________ ____
Inspectors, field........................ ......................
Janitors............................................... ........... .
Laboratory technicians__________ _______
Laborers (including gardeners)......................
Gardeners__________ _________
Laborers-_______________ ____________
Laundry workers........ ........................
Librarians______________________
Library aides__________________ _______
Linemen_________________ _________
Machinists, maintenance....... ...... ................ .
Mechanics, water works___________ ____ _
Office-machine operators.............. ........ .........
Painters..................................... ...... ..............
Plumbers................................... ............... .
Pumping-plant engineers....... ...... .................
Pumping-plant oilers............ ..............
Recreational leaders__ ____ _____ ____ ____
Repairmen, general ....... ............ .................
Sanitarians.............................................
Secretaries_______________________________
Sewage-plant operators............ ............ ........
Stationary engineers......................................
Stationary firemen____ ______ ____________
Stenographers............................... ..................
Stock clerks................................... ..............
Storekeeper supervisors........ ....... ................
Switchboard operators............... ..............
Tree surgeons........... .....................................
Tree trimmers_______ ____ _____ _
.
Typists.......................................... ................
Typists, junior................. ...... .............
Typists, senior............ ........... .........
Water-purification operators........ ..................
Water-service men............. ......... ..................
Females
Account clerks...................... .........................
Accountants (including supervisors).............
Attendants, hospital, etc......... ..............
Charwomen................................................ .
Clerks, general................... .................... ........
Clerks, senior......................................
Clerical supervisors, except principal............
Clerical supervisors, principal........................
Cooks___________________________ _
Dietitians.........................................................

See footnotes at end o f table.




At­
Cin­ Den­
lanta Buffalo cinnati ver

Flint

2$1.22
1.53
$1.19
<.28
1.03
1.07
1.10
1.19
1.39
1.25
2 1.24
0
2 1. 15 2 1.25
1.41
1.03
1.78
1.38
2.15
2.36
.91
.78
1.22
2.84
.89
1.16
1.59
1.08
4.66
< 43
.
1.05
1.37
21.27
1.52
.69
.67
.97

$1.05
1.42
.66
1.12
(3
)

$1.20
(3
)

1.10
1.01

.90
1.50

1.24

1.56
(3
)
.90

1.12
.77

1.53
.89

.95
.56
.60
.54
.61
.75
1.24
.58
2.99
.51

.94
2.72
.80
2.71

.51
.87
21.04
.78
(3
)
21.06
21.44
1.30
.85
21.06
.99
.90
.87
2 1.03
2.90
.78
.79
21.05
(3
)
.62
.77
(3
)
.89
.83
.84

.98
1.12
.70
2 80
2.78
.78
2.78
.67
1.13
1.10
.85
21.30
2 1.51
1.13
(3
)
.97
2.93
1.02
1.38
.93
2 1.10
2.78
1.29
2.65
1.03
.93
.81

.86
.87

$0.96 $0.80
1.42
1.06
4.39
.54
.91
1.01
.95
(3
)
1.57
1.65
.78
2.78
1.38 2 1.14
1.26
(3
)
1.52
1.49
1.85
(8
)
2; 69
.65
.94
1.17
(3
)
1.00
1.36
(3)
.63
.93
.99
.82
4.65
4.65
.87
.63
.70
.62
.77
.78
1.19
.60
.71
.71
.63

1.07
.91
1.38
1.40
1.41
.84
1.03
(3
)

.93
1.22
2.76
.92
(3
)
1.00
2. 6O
.75
1.08
.95
.80
4.41
4 41
.
.88
2.64
2.64
.66
.87
1.01
2.62

.60
2.72
2.72
2.72
4 45
.
.69
.44
(3
)
.79
.66
2 1.24
1.31
.95
.74
.80
.73
.92

1.28 2 1.10
.98 2.91
.94
.68.
2.73
.91
1.10 2.99

.64
(3
)
.85

Gary Grand Hart­
Rapids ford

(3
)

(3
)
0
(3
)
1.08

1.50

.93
.83

1.20
1.00

1.09
.78

.98

.78
.88
1.22
2.79
.84
.84
(3
)

1.28
.81
.85
.84
.85
(*)
.58

1.01
1.50
1.50
(3
)
1.07 ______
.94

1.35
1. 36
.89
"".87

.79
.89

.84
.84

1.14
.92

.78
1.26
4.37
2.41
2.61

.93
(3
)
.55
.62
; 71
.92
.78
1.05
.72
1.00

1.16
2.31
.27
2.56
.70
.07
.89

1.08

.94

*.56
.66
2.83
(3
)
1.14

.49
.50
.64
.87

2.86

4.62

2.60
4.77

2.79
.81

4.45
2.84

_

.97
(3
)
(3
)
(3)
.99
.86

1.26
.95
0
1.10
.85
.80

.98
.71

.99
.70

.74

.70

1.42
.64
0
.82
0
.82

0
1.53
.71
0
.73
. 78
.73

1.09
1.02
1.15
.88 ...........
1.06
.82
1.00
1.09
1.12
.89
.87
1.02

.94
1.14

1.05
.98
.78 ‘ ‘ "."88
.84
.91
0
(»)
.90

(3
)

.75
.90

$1.13
1.38
.60
.94
.91
1.01
1.08
1.07
1.37
1.78
2.23

.71

.95

(3
)
1.10
.98
.87

$1.03
(3
)
(3)
1.01
(3
)
(3
)
.68
.88
1.29
1.41
1.92
.82
.99
.92
1.14

.77
0
0

.80

.98

.91
.58
.81
,95
.94

.86
0
4.51
.53
.55
.95
.82
.90

0

.59

.73
1.05
.93

1 IS
.
.83

7
T able 2.—Average Hourly Earnings 1 of Employees in 15 Municipal Governments,

Selected Occupations, By Sex, June 1944—Continued
Occupation and sex

Cin­ Den­
At­
lanta Buffalo cinnati ver

Flint Gary

Grand Hart­
Rapids ford

Females^Continued
Elevator operators________________________
Food workers (except cooks).......... ................
Food workers, hospital.......... ..................
Food workers, other than hospital______
Graduate nurses (including Public Health
Service)_______________________________ 2$0.62
Graduate nurses (except Public Health
2.45
Service)______________________ _____
.73
Graduate nurses (Public Health Service),
<.94
Graduate nurse supervisors_______________
2.39
Housekeepers___ ________________________
2.96
Laboratory technicians___________________
.42
Laborers (including gardeners)......................
2 34
.
Laundry workers________________________
2.97
Librarians_______________________________
.62
Library aides...................................................
.43
Matrons, park___________________ ________
.61
Matrons, prison _______________________
Office-machine operators__________________
.56
Recreational leaders______________________
Sanitarians______________________________
2.81
Secretaries______ ________________________
2.66
Social workers, welfare __________________
2.77
Stenographers___________________ ________
Stock clerks _
______
____ __
2.65
Switchboard operators....................................
.74
Typists_____ ___________ ____ ___________
.54
Typists, junior_______________________
.75
Typists, senior............................. .............

Occupation and sex

Males

Account clerks______ _____ ______ _______
Accountants (including supervisors)______
Attendants, hospital, etc....... ......................
Automotive mechanics................................
Blacksmiths................... ........... ............ ......
Brickmasons___________________________
Building superintendents, school................
Carpenters, maintenance.............................
Civil engineers, junior................................. .
Civil engineers, senior________ __________
Civil engineers, principal........ ............ ........
Clerks, general.............................. ................
Clerks, senior.______ ____________________
Clerical supervisors, except principal..........
Clerical supervisors, principal.....................
Cooks_____ ______ _____ ________ ________
Draftsmen, junior....... ........... ......................
Draftsmen, senior..... ................ ...................
Electricians, maintenance_______________
Elevator operators....... .............................
Engineering aides, junior..................... ........
Engineering aides, senior.............................
Equipment operators, heavy......................
Equipment operators, light________ _____
Food workers (except cooks)....... ...............
Food workers, hospital.._____________
Food workers, other than hospital.........
Foremen, labor (shop and field)............ ......
Guards and watchmen (other than prison) _
Guards........... ........................................
Watchmen....... ......... ............................
Guards, prison....... .......................................
Helpers, any craft................................ ........
Inspectors, field...........................................
Janitors.................... .....................................
Laboratory technicians..
Gardeners,.
Laborers.........
Laundry workers,
Librarians,..........
Library aides____
See footnotes at end of table.




$0.52
.53
.53

(3
)
(8
) <$6.38
$0.46
<.36
<.51
<39

$0.58
.57
.57

2.79

.78

(»)

.90

2.68
.94
2.84
2.55
.74
.68
.61

.76
.82
1.02
(3
)
. 87

<.57
*1.05
<.66
<.45

.89
.93
1.11
(3
)
1.01

.54
.81
.60
.57
.67
.65

(3
)
< 37
.
.73
2.39
.61
.70
.64

.80
.81
.98
.96

.92
.82
.76

.60
.93
.74

1.13
.92
.85

.68
.63
.61
.70

.63

.75
.68
.58
.74

.74
.79
.72
.91

$0.87

10
.2

1.44

1.72
1.69
1.55
.85
1.15

.92

(3
)
.81
.98
1.16

(3
)
(3
)

.89
.53

1.61
1.09

1.76
.73

1.27
.93
.95
.92

.87
.55
.45

1.56
.95

10
.0

2.92
2.93
.90

.64
.71
.64

(3
)
(3
)
(3
)

2.57

11
.1

1.44
1.61
.79
.94
1.75
1.48
.91

(3
)

$1.31
" i . ’ iiT

(3
)

(3
)
.98

11
.2

1.18
1.43
(3
)
.94
1.07
1.05
1.41

11
.1

1.16
1.40

St.
Louis

St.
Paul

$1.14
1.48
2.54
1.09
1.24
1.75
1.29
*1.48
1.27
1.59
2.02
2.77

(3
)
$1.53

2.97
*1.06
2 71
.
1.04

’ "96"
1.13
1.14
.97

1.54
2.62
.83
.91
1.26
2.81
<.41
<.41

.92
2.75
.90

12
.1
.85
.8
1
(3
)

.82
(')
<..75
2.62
.82

1.24
.74
2 1.08
2.78

10
.1

28
.6

2.86

2.78

(3
)

.77

.96

$1.41
1.57

(3
)
12
.2
(3
)

.63

.99
.65

.73

Pitts­ Port­
land
burgh (Oreg.)

1.45
1.55
1.98
2.30

.86
.50
(3
)

.92

Okla­
homa
City

.85

1.13

.74

Oak­
land

8
.72

.78
1.01

.92

.64
.68
.66
.86

1.30
1.29

$0.79

.68

*87
.84
2.67
.50
2.62
.66
.60
.76

$1.15
1.41
<.47
1.82
(3
)
1.84
.78
1.75
1.52
1.50
1.77
.97
1.23
1.35
1.50

(3
)

<$0.69
1.61
.90

.59

.93
(3
)
.86
.71
.64
.78

11
.1

$1.61

.96

.81
.94
.91
.96
.91

1.02
2.69
.65
.65
.68
.65
2.62
(3
)
.46

1.02
1.44
1.65
1.89
1.10
1.10
1.23
1.53
1.50
1.31
(3
)
.86

.96

.94

City
X

$1.09
1.33
.92
(3
)
.71
.79
1.22
1.52
1.81
.68
.89
.93
1.15
(3
)
.94
1.12
.85
.55
1.05
.75
.70

.85
.60
.74
.46

1.31

1.08
.43

.81
.91
.80

.61
.62
.61

.83
.54

8
T a b l e 2 .— A

..
Earnings 1 of Employees in 15 Munich
Occupations, By Sex, June 1944—Continued

Occupation and sex

Oak­
land

Okla­
homa
City

$1.37
(3)
1.05

$0.82
.77

1.36
1.70

.95
.95
.84

Pitts­ Port­
land
burgh (Oreg.)

St.
Louis

Governments,

St.
Paul

City
X

Moles—Continued
Linemen_________________________________
Machinists, maintenance__________________
Mechanics,
works
Office-machine operators__________________
Painters_______ __________________ ____ ___
Plumbers......................... ................ ................
Pumping-pl^nt engineers _ . . . . . .
Pumping-plant oilers.......................................
Recreational leaders_____________________
Repairmen, general_______________________
Sanitarians' ~
__ . . . . . . . . . ........
Secretaries____________ ___________ . . . . . __
Sewage-plant operators_______ ’____________
Stationary engineers_________ _____________
Stationary firemen............ ...............................
Stenographers...................................................
Stock clerks.................... ........... ...................
Storekeeper supervisors___________________
Switchboard operators____________________
Tree surgeons.*..... ........................... ................
Tree trimmers____________________________
Typists.___________________ ________ ___
Typists, junior....... .........................................
Typists, senior....... —.......................................
Water-purification operators........... .......... .
Water-service m e n ..___ ___________________
Females
Account clerks.......... „ ____________________
Accountants (including supervisors)
Attendants, hospital, etc_______ __________
Charwomen______________________________
Clerks, general _____
______
Clerks, senior........................................... ........
Clerical supervisors, except principal_______
Clerical supervisors, principal. _ _ ___ _
.
Cooks_________________ ____ ________ _____
Dietitians..____ ____________________ _____
Elevator operators__________ _____________
Food workers (except cooks) _ _
___ _
Food workers, hospital.................... ................
Food workers, other than hospital..... .............
Graduate nurses (including Public Health
Service)________________________________
Graduate nurses (except Public Health
Service)________________________________
Graduate nurses (Public Health Service).......
Graduate nurse supervisors_______ _____ ___
Housekeepers____________________________
Laboratorv technicians____________________
Laborers (including gardeners)_____________
Laundry workers. __
_
Librarians
.__
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Library aides
__
_____
Matrons, park ...
_____
Matrons, prison _ _ ________ _ _
_
Office-machine operators
_
_ ___
Recreational leaders __
___
____ ___
Sanitarians
Secretaries_______________________________
Social workers, welfare____________________
Stenographers._
.
.
_. ... .
Stock clerks __
Switchboard operators __ ____
_____
____
Typtats _ _
___
. __ _
Typists, junior___
Typists, senior___________________________

1.06
1.21
1.41
(*
*)
1.25

.41
.72
.96
.84
.90
.63
(3)

(3)

(»)

(»)
.97

$1.40
1.75
.86
1.63
1.75
1.19
.96
1.09
*1.15
1.10
1.30
(3)
8.99
*.81
1.10
*.83
*.81
.87

$1.30
1.22
1.12
(3)
1.32
1.46
1.17
.95
1.01
1.11

.83
.83

.76
.91
(3)
1.45

(3)
(3)
(3)
.49
.68
.85
(3)

.87
.90
4.43
*.54
*.86

(*)

1.20

.79
.89

*.60
4.80
.59
.52

.79

10
.1
(3
)

«1.55
1.59
(3)
.61

*1.00
(3)

1.19
(3)
(3)
.92
1.18

(3)
.55
(*)
(«)

$1.30

(»)
(»)
.99
.97
.74
.77
.96
.93
1.21
.56

1.27
1.06
8.84
8.73
(3)
*.75
.78
.67

8
.1

*.83

*1 5
.'0 '
(*
)

$1.04

.88

1.44
.70
’ .’ 85'
(3)
.91
1.14

.89

1.1
0
1.10
(*
)
(3)

(3)
.84
.76
.74

.86

.78
(3)

(»)

.65

.84

.91

.71
.81

(»)

8.97
.56
8.50
8.50

........

(*
)

*1.02
*.49

1.19

*.80

(•)

.88

*.76

1.23

(3
)
1.19

*.78
.81
(3)

4.50
.91
*1.30

.86
.89
(3)

1.23

C)
3
.82

.80

.96

1.03
.80

(3)
.77
.58

*1.01
(3)
8.48
.96
.78

8.75
.78
*.90
4.55

.89
*1.10

(3)
.41

.80
.85

1.17

.74

.85
.98
.85
.85
.84
(*)

.69

.87
.91
1.08
.99
1.49
.90

.57
.65
(»)
.66

*.78
.71
.65
(»)

.78
.76
.75
(3)

8.52
8.84
.51

.81

.80

(»)

1.1
0
10
.1

8.92

.49

.87

<)
*

.47

.73

.52

.95
.85
.87
.76

.38

8.50

88
.6

$ .0
12

.66

86
.6
86
.6
86
.6

.75

(»)

.80
.84
.58
.47

69
54

1.31

.78
.95

.81
.63

8.93
8.78
*.75
8.61

.75

.w

".’ 95

.74

1.07

.63
.57
.55
.60

* For some workers average hourly earnings are not straight-time but include overtime at premium rates.
Only a small number of workers are so affected.
* Some workers receive additional compensation in the form of meals and/or lodging, or other payments
in kind, the cash value of which was not estimated. The earnings of such workers have been excluded from
the calculation of the average shown in order to avoid understating the average hourly earnings.
* Too few workers to justify presentation of an average.
4 All workers receive additional compensation in the form of meals and/or lodging, Or other payment in
kind, the cash value of which was not estimated. The earnings presented include no allowance for such
compensation.
* A comparable average for this combination cannot be shown, since all the workers in one of the two
occupations receive additional compensation in the form of meals and/or lodging or other payments in kind.




9
Table 2 also permits comparison of hourly earnings of male and
female workers in the same occupational groups. Of the 12 cities
with data for general clerks of both sexes, Flint and City X were the
only cities in which male general clerks received lower hourly earnings
than the corresponding female group. In the 10 cities in which the
earnings of women were below those of men, the difference ranged
from only 1 percent in Cincinnati to almost 50 percent in Grand
Rapids. In 8 of these 10 cities the margin was greater than 10
percent. In the more highly skilled group of clerical supervisors
(except principal) none of the 10 cities reporting information for
both sexes showed female earnings above those of males. In St.
Paul both sexes received $1.10; in the 9 remaining cities the difference
varied in favor of men from 2 percent in Buffalo to 70 percent in
Pittsburgh, but in 5 of these cities was under 10 percent. It is probable
that differences in length of time on the job and in the content of
job account in large part for the differentials between the sexes found
within any single city.
Estim ated Annual Salaries

As in the case of average hourly earnings, there is a marked lack of
uniformity in the estimated annual salaries of identical occupations
in the 15 cities, and similarly, occupations requiring approximately
the same degree of skill show substantial variations in salaries within
any given city.5 The differences observed on an annual basis are
due both to differences in average hourly earnings and to variations
in average scheduled weekly hours of work.
A distribution based on the annual salaries of 16 key male occupa­
tions that appeared in most cities showed that in 12 cities half or
more of the classifications fell within the $2,000-$3,000 salary class.
In one city (City X ) half of the key male occupations had salaries
under $2,000; in Gary and Pittsburgh the concentration was in the
salary bracket of over $3,000. With respect to 7 key female occu­
pations, no city reported salaries over $3,000; the majority of these
occupations in 10 cities were in the $1,500 to $2,000 bracket.6 It is
important to bear in mind that the selected occupations do not include
certain higher-salaried employees, such as firemen, teachers, police­
men, and top administrative personnel. Moreover, the distribution
of occupations by salary classes is not necessarily indicative of the
distribution of municipal employees surveyed in this study, because the
former takes no account of the number of workers in each occupation.
Of the 16 key male occupations, the highest-paid group, based on
an average for all 15 cities, was senior civil engineers, with annual
salaries of $3,278; the lowest-paid workers were janitors, at $1,619.
Plumbers ($3,039), accountants ($3,032), and maintenance electricians
($2,920) were among the highest-paid jobs; laborers ($1,773) and lightequipment operators ($1,993) received the second and third lowest
annual wages. Among the 7 key female occupations, secretaries
were the highest paid ($2,007) and switchboard operators the lowest
($1,510).•
* Detailed data on estimated annual salaries, by occ
•See footnote 7 for enumeration of key occupations.




and city, are given in table 4, p. 17.

10

Scheduled W eekly H ours o f W ork

The scheduled workweek was not uniform either among all 15
cities or within any single city. The majority of office employees
were scheduled to work 38 hours in 4 cities (Gary, Hartford, Oakland,
St. Louis), more than 38 but less than 40 horns in 3 cities (Buffalo,
St. Paul, Pittsburgh), 40 hours in one city (Grand Rapids), 44 hours
in 4 cities (Cincinnati, Denver, Flint, Portland), and 45 horns in
City X . The regular workweek was reported as 41.5 horns in Atlanta
and 44.5 hours in Oklahoma City. For nonoffice workers, scheduled
hours were generally longer and there was greater variation within
each city. Very few were scheduled to work less than 40 hours and
with the exception of some custodial and boilerhouse employees,
few were scheduled to work more than 48 hours. Hospital workers
in Atlanta, Cincinnati, Denver, and Pittsburgh were among those
for whom a 48-hour workweek was scheduled.
Intercity Comparisons o f W age Levels

The general level of municipal wage rates in the 15 cities is not
easily identified from an inspection of the occupational data, because
of the numerous classifications, the varying number of employees
covered in each group, and the great disparity in wages. To facilitate
intercity comparisons, two indexes of wage rates were constructed,
based on 23 of the 74 key occupational classifications7 included in
this survey. All of these occupations appeared in at least 14 of the
15 cities, accounted for a substantial proportion of the employees
surveyed, and were representative of the range of wage rates and skills.
The indexes were constructed in the following manner: (1) The
number of employees in each city in each occupation was used as a
weight to obtain the average occupational rate for all 15 cities com­
bined; (2) the occupational rate in each city was expressed as a rela­
tive of the composite occupational rate; and (3) the resulting rela­
tives for each city were then weighted in proportion to the number of
workers in that occupation in all cities combined, yielding a compo­
site relative for each city. In analyzing the resulting indexes of
hourly rates and annual salaries presented in table 3, it should be
noted that they are based on a limited number of the occupations
surveyed and also exclude the higher-salaried personnel. Although
the indexes presented differ in some degree from those that would be
obtained if the coverage were more inclusive, it is believed that the
rank of the cities with respect to their municipal wage levels is
representative.
7 These include 16 male occupations: Account clerks, accountants (including supervisors), automotive
mechanics, blacksmiths, maintenance carpenters, senior civil engineers, maintenance electricians, heavyequipment operators, light-equipment operators, labor foremen, field inspectors, janitors, laborers, painters,
plumbers, and general repairmen. The 7 female occupations include clerical supervisors (except principal),
general clerks, graduate nurses of the public health service, secretaries, stenographers, switchboard operators,
and typists.




11

T able 3.— Indexes and Rank of 15 Municipal Governments, by Level of Annual and

Hourly Wage Rates in Selected Occupations, June 1944
Annual rates
City

____
Oakland
_
...
Gary_____ ____ _________________ _________________
Portland (Orag.l _
. . ...
... _____
______
St. Paul..................... ............ ......................... ...............
Buffalo . . . . . .
.
....
___ __
Plint
....
_ : ______________
Pittsburgh
._
. ___ ___________
Hartford
___
...
. . _ ....
_
Cincinnati. . .
_ . T.. ___ _ _ .... _
Grand Rapids
_
Rp.nvfir
_
_ . _ ......
Oklahoma City
___
_ _ . . . ___ ...
City X
...
_____ ....
St. Lonis
_______
__
_
_
Atlanta___________________________________ ______

Index
(average
all cities=
100)
118
115
114
110
107
107
106
102
99
93
91
90
88
85
77

Hourly rates

Rank of
city based
on index

Index
(average
all cities=
100)

1
2
3
4
5.5
5.5
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15

124
113
113
108
105
104
109
100
94
99
92
84
82
93
82

Rank of
city based
on index
1
2.5
2.5
5
6
7
4
8
10
9
12
13
14.5
11
14.5

The relative position of each city with respect to both hourly rates
and annual salaries was found to be almost identical. Oakland, Gary,
and Portland had the three highest ranks measured by both indexes,
while Atlanta and the southwestern City X had the two lowest.
Seven of the cities surveyed were also included in a study of inter­
city variations in industrial wage levels made by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics in 1943.8 A comparison of the two sets of data revealed a
close similarity in the rank of wage levels of municipal employees and
of employees in private industry in the same cities. Portland showed
the highest municipal wage rates as well as the highest industrial
wage rates, and Atlanta ranked lowest in both respects. The remain­
ing 5 cities, ranked from high to low on the basis of the data from both
studies, were Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Denver, and St. Louis.
W age Increases Since January 1941

Wage rates of municipal employees increased substantially between
January 1941 and June 1944 in all 15 cities. Some of these increases
involved upward revisions of basic wage scales; others were given in
the form of cost-of-living bonuses. In several cities both types of
wage adjustments were made, but usually for different groups of
employees.
Wage scales were advanced in all or most of the departments in
Denver, Flint, Gary, Oklahoma City, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis.
In some of these cities a uniform sum was applied to the wages of all
or most employees, in others a uniform percentage increase was
awarded, while in the remaining cities graduated sums or graduated
percentage increases were applied to different salary brackets. In
Flint, for example, a uniform increase of $130 per year, or 6 cents per
hour, was granted in August 1943 to all municipal employees except
those in the Board of Education. In July 1944, employees of the
Board of Education were to receive a flat increase of $10 per month.
A uniform general increase of 5 percent was. applied to the wages of
all salaried workers (except department heads) in Gary on January 1,
1942. In the same city all employees paid on an hourly basis received
8 See Intercity Variations in Wage Levels, in Monthly Labor Review, August 1944.




12

a flat increase of 10 cents an hour on January 1, 1942, and graduated
increases on January 1, 1943, and January 1, 1944. In the 4 other
cities where wage scales were adjusted upward both flat-rate and
percentage increases were granted to different groups of workers. In
some cities the amount of the increase varied with different salary
classes.
Cost-of-living bonuses form a part of the present salary of all or a
large proportion of the municipal employees in Atlanta, Buffalo, Cin­
cinnati, Grand Rapids, Hartford, Oakland, Portland, St. Paul, and
City X . The St. Paul and Portland wage plans call for an annual
adjustment of wages based on the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
cost-of-living index. In the 7 other cities the cost-of-living bonus
was most commonly a variable sum applied to different salary
brackets. In Buffalo, for example, all employees earning less than
$1,200 a year received a bonus of $156. The amount of the bonus
decreased as the salary increased so that employees in the $3,600$3,899 salary class received a bonus of $97.50. In Cincinnati employ­
ees in the lowest salary class of $1,020 or less a year received $250.08,
but the amount increased with each salary class so that for those
earning $2,580 the bonus was $398.88; all employees above this salary
group received a uniform bonus of $400.08.
It is estimated that the wage increases and bonus payments had the
effect of raising wages by approximately 10 to 15 percent in most
cities.
W age-Paym ent Practices
JOB-CLASSIFICATION AND SALARY PLANS

Job-classification systems covering all or nearly all major groups
of municipal workers were in effect in 12 of the 15 cities. Pittsburgh
had no similar system for any department but was engaged in a jobanalysis study at the time of the survey. In Gary classifications
were used only in the Police Department, and in Denver only in the
Departments of Education and Public Welfare. Of the 12 cities
having the more extensive systems, only Buffalo, Cincinnati, and St.
Paul covered nonteaching personnel in the Department of Education.
Four general types of salary plans were prevalent: (a) Uniform pay
plans that classify jobs by grades, with a uniform salary range for all
jobs within a grade, found in Buffalo, Flint, Grand Rapids, St. Louis,
and St. Paul; (b) plans that called for a single minimum rate for each
job class but with varying maximum rates, used in Atlanta, Cincinnati,
Hartford, Oakland, Portland, and City X ; (c) salaries and wages fixed
annually for individual jobs, with no step rates and no rate ranges in­
dicated, found in Gary and Pittsburgh; and (d) the discretionary
fixing of salaries and wages by the appointing officer, practiced in
Denver. Denver, however, had established standardized wage rates
and ranges in the Board of Education and Department of Public
Welfare. Insufficient information was available to permit classifica­
tion of the wage plan of Oklahoma City.
All of the uniform pay plans provided step rates between the mini­
mum and maximum rates for a grade. These step-rate increases
were earned at stated service intervals, except in Grand Rapids where
they were granted on the basis of individual merit.
Salary increases within the range were also a feature of the (b) type
plans found in six cities. However, only in Atlanta were specific




13
step-rate increases prescribed at certain time intervals; Cincinnati,
Hartford, Oakland, and Portland provided specific increments to be
awarded for individual merit.. In City X the amount of increase
within the salary range and the time interval were determined on an
individual basis.
Although a classification of jobs is common to both, the (b) type
plans typically provide for many more job classes and rate ranges
than do the (a) type plans. For example, the (a) type plan used in
St. Louis contained 32 job-classification grades, with a uniform salary
range and step rates at stated service intervals for all jobs within a
grade. There were 60 minimum rates with 150 rate ranges, and 33
flat rates with no rate ranges in Cincinnati which followed a (b) type
plan.9
Workers paid hourly or daily rates were, in most cases, treated
differently from employees hired on a monthly or annual salary basis.
Among the 5 cities with uniform pay plans, only Flint extended classi­
fication by grade to all daily and hourly rate workers, with ranges and
step increases established for each grade. Buffalo set grade rates
but made no provision for ranges or step increases. St. Louis and St.
Paul incorporated daily and hourly rates for specific jobs in their plans,
but except for one job in St. Paul, no ranges or step increases were
provided. Grand Kapids had rates with prescribed ranges but no
step increases for maintenance employees in the Department of Edu ­
cation. Of the 6 cities with (b) type plans, only Atlanta, Hartford,
and Oakland had ranges and step increases applicable to both daily
and hourly rates and salary rates. In City X daily and hourly rates
were set for specific jobs but the system of ranges was not extended
to include these rates. The Portland plan covered only monthly
rates, while Cincinnati included some hourly and daily rates with
corresponding ranges but no step increases.
METHODS OF WAGE PAYMENTS

Municipal employees, like employees of the Federal and State Govern­
ments, are typically salaried workers whose wages are expressed in
terms of monthly or annual rates. However, substantial numbers of
workers, particularly in the craft, maintenance, and laborer classificar
tions, are paid hourly or daily rates. Occupations in which approxi­
mately one-fourth to three-fourths of the employees are paid by this
method are the laborers, oilers, plumbers, heavy-equipment operators,
carpenters, painters, brickmasons, electricians, stationary firemen,
general repairmen, light-equipment operators, tree trimmers, black­
smiths, tree surgeons, and automotive mechanics. In the first 7 of
the 15 enumerated occupations more than half of the workers were
paid hourly or daily rates. An appreciable number of mechanics in
waterworks, craft helpers, labor foremen, stationary engineers, guards
and watchmen, janitors, and stock clerks were paid by the day or
hour in two or more cities. Women workers paid daily or hourly
rates in two or more cities were employed as cooks, other food workers,
laborers, park matrons, charwomen and maids, and nurses (other than
public health nurses). More than half of the women cooks, other
food workers, and laborers included in the study were found in this
category. Daily and hourly rate workers constituted about a fourth•
•See table 5, p. 20, for details of the St. Louis and Cincinnati plans.




14
of all the workers studied, and approximately the same proportion
in each of the seven cities City X , Cincinnati, Denver, Flint, Okla­
homa City, St. Louis, and St. Paul. More than half of the workers in
Pittsburgh and more than a third in Atlanta, Gary, and Hartford
were paid by this method.1
0
With the exception of Hartford and Oklahoma City, all of the
municipalities made provision for payment for work beyond the
scheduled hours. The city of Hartford did, however, allow compensa­
tory time off for overtime. Three cities (City X , Grand Rapids, and
St. Paul) paid straight-time for overtime, while in five cities (Atlanta,
Flint, Oakland, Pittsburgh, and Portland) the usual overtime rate
was time and a half. Of these five cities, only Portland extended the
time-and-one-half rate to all municipal workers; in the other four
cities, only certain classes of workers were paid at this rate—six occu­
pations in Atlanta’s water department, only daily-rate workers in
Oakland, journeymen in Pittsburgh, and almost but not all workers
in Flint. In the remaining five cities overtime provisions varied
widely. For example, Buffalo paid $1 an hour for work beyond the
normal schedule with a $5 maximum for total overtime payment,
while library employees in Gary were permitted to choose between
compensatory time off and overtime pay at the hourly rate of parttime workers.
Adm inistration o f M unicipal Em ploym ent System s
CIV IL SERVICE SYSTEMS

All cities but Gary, Denver, and Hartford have civil service systems
covering all departments of the municipal government. In Denver,
the police and fire departments are the only departments covered by
a civil service system and in Gary, only the police department. In
Denver, however, the civil service commission has the power to re­
view appointments in other departments. Hartford has a personnel
system administered by the board of finance, but the board has no
powers of appointment; appointments are made by department heads,
and no competitive examinations are held.
In those cities where civil service systems are in effect, examinations
are open and competitive for most of the positions in the classified
service and are generally free. In Buffalo, however, fees range
from 50 cents for an examination for a per diem job or one paying less
than $1,200 to $5 for a job paying more than $5,000 a year. The St.
Louis charter provides that fees may be charged.
PEN SION FUNDS

At the time of this survey, St. Louis was the only city which did not
have a pension-fund system of any type. The establishment of a
pension system was, however, authorized by St. Louis’ City Charter
“ if and when permissible under the constitution and lawrs of the State
of Missouri.” In some cities only personnel of the fire and police
departments were covered by the municipal pension system; in others,
separate plans outside of the general municipal pension scheme were
set up for fire*, police, and education department employees.
Among the various plans the lowest compulsory retirement age was
65; the most common compulsory retirement age was 70. The mini­
1 The proportion of nonsalaried workers in the labor force probably varies somewhat from season to
0
season.




15
mum retirement age found was 50, although in some cities where
voluntary retirement was permissible after 20 years’ service, retire­
ment could be effectuated before an employee reached the age of 50.
Although the manner in which benefits were calculated varied
under the different systems, the most common pension was found to be
one-half of a person’s salary at the time of retirement. Under most
of these plans employees contributed from 2 to 4 percent of their
salaries; the city government’s share in most cases took the form of
contributions sufficient to meet the deficits accruing out of current
payments. Further details regarding the pension systems in the 15
cities surveyed are supplied in table 6 on page 24.
V A C ATION A N D S IC K -L E A V E POLICIES

Paid-vacation plans were found in operation in all 15 cities; the
general provisions of these plans are shown in table 7 (page 26). In
certain cities large groups of workers were not covered, as for example,
employees paid on an hourly, daily, or weekly basis in St. Louis and
nonteaching personnel of the board of education in Pittsburgh. Gary
limited its paid-vacation policy to employees in the library, school, and
fire departments. In most cities the duration of paid vacations
varied from 1 to 3 weeks a year.
Data on sick-leave policies were obtained from 11 of the 15 cities
surveyed. This information is summarized in table 7 (page 26).
With few exceptions the employees of these municipalities were paid
sick leave for a period of time ranging from 10 to 30 days a year.
In Denver this benefit was restricted to employees of the school and
water departments, and in Portland only custodial and clerical em­
ployees in the school district were covered.
The cities differed with respect to employees’ rights to* cumulate
vacation or sick leave over a period of years and to receive payment
for cumulated leave upon separation from service.
T E N U R E OF OFFICE

Tenure of office is in most cases attained after a 6-month proba­
tionary period, but in three cities, (Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and City
X ) the period is only 3 months;1 in Oakland and Hartford it is
1
1 year, and in St. Louis it is “ not more than 1 year.” Information
regarding the probationary period in Gary is not available.
"Seniority is recognized in determining lay-offs in all cities except
Atlanta, Cincinnati, Gary, and Pittsburgh. In St. Louis this rule is
observed for all but a small group of employees; Denver and Oakland
reported exceptions to the seniority principle in some departments.
Employees have the right of appeal from discharge “ for cause”
in most cities. There are no specific provisions for some departments
that are outside the merit system in Gary and Denver. In Okla­
homa City appeal is to the city manager, and there are no provisions
for public hearing.
Union Affiliation

Although none of the municipal governments had written con­
tracts with unions, in some cities entire departments were organized
and in others groups of employees were members of independent
n in Cincinnati the probationary period for unskilled laborers is 2 months.




16
unions or of unions affiliated with the American Federation of Labor
or the Congress of Industrial Organizations. Only two cities, Denver
and Oklahoma City, reported that no municipal employees were or­
ganized; for Flint, St. Louis, and City X , no information on unioniza­
tion was available.
The status of union affiliation in 7 cities may be summarized briefly.
In Atlanta mechanics were members of various unions affiliated with
the A. F. of L .; truck drivers belonged to a local of the Teamsters
Union, A. F. of L. In Buffalo employees of the division of streets, the
city hospitals, the park department, and the sewer authority belonged to
the State, County, and Municipal Employees Union (CIO.) Switch­
board operators in the police and fire departments and janitors in the
public library of Gary were members of the Building Service Em­
ployees Union, A. F. of L. In the Gary school department there was
a teachers’ local of the American Federation of Teachers, A. F. of L .;
service and maintenance employees in the same department belonged
to another A. F. of L. affiliate; a few municipal workers of Gary were
members of the Fire Fighters Union, A. F. of L.; while certain hourly
rate employees of the street, sewer, and garbage department belonged
to unions not designated.
In Grand Rapids maintenance and operating employees of the
board of education and the public library were members of an A. F.
of L. affiliate; fire and police department members belonged to the
Metropolitan Club, sponsored by the A. F. of L. In addition, the
Grand Rapids Council of Public Employees covered board of educa­
tion workers, and an unaffiliated municipal employees’ association
included city workers other than those in the public library, board of
education, and fire and police departments.
In Hartford employees of the street department belonged to the
Street Department Operatives Union, A. F. of L. Some of the
employees in the following departments in Portland were members of
unions affiliated with the A. F. of L.: Police, fire, bureau of parks,
bureau of water works, and bureau of street cleaning. In Portland’s
Multnomah School District many custodial and maintenance em­
ployees, as well as teachers, were reported to be unionized, but no
information concerning affiliation was available. While entire de­
partments in St. Paul were not unionized, workers in several occupa­
tions, including maintenance employees, teachers, truck drivers,
laborers, and firemen, were members of A. F. of L. unions.
The State, County, and Municipal Workers of America (CIO)
reported having one local in Flint covering hospital, waterworks, and
waste-removal employees and employees in the board of education,
and another local of city firemen. In St. Louis, two locals of the same
union covered civil-service employees and workers in the city hall,
municipal court, civil courts, and city auditorium. An amalgamated
local of city employees and another covering only workers engaged in
municipal utilities was reported for Oakland. The CIO union had
only one local in Pittsburgh with membership limited to maintenance
and custodial workers in the board of education.
Very little information is available concerning the extent of unioni­
zation in Cincinnati. It was reported, however, that although there
were no contracts, conferences were held with union officials, and union
rates were paid to municipal building-trades employees.




T able 4.— Estim ated Average Annual Salaries o f Em ployees in 15 M unicipal Governments, Selected Occupations, b y Sex , June 1944

Occupation and sex

Atlanta Buffalo Cincin­ Denver Flint
nati

Gary

Grand
Rapids

Hart­
ford

Oak­
land

Okla­
homa
City

Pitts­
burgh

Port­
St.
land
(Oreg.) Louis

(2)

$2,156

$2, 232
2,725
1,507
2,350
2,183
2,311
2,486
2,501
2,710
3,523
4,426

$2,854
3,234

$2,066
2,580

$2,350
2,932
»1,168
4,333

$3,014

' St.
Paul

CityX

M ale

Account clerks_________________________
Accountants (including supervisors)..........
Attendants, hospital, etc.......... .................
Automotive mechanics.................................
Blacksmiths..................................................
Brick masons________________ __________
Building superintendents, school...............
Carpenters, maintenance............................
Civil engineers, junior..................................
Civil engineers, senior....... ..........................
Civil engineers, principal............................
Clerks, general..............................................
Clerks, senior....... ......................................
Clerical supervisors, except principal_____
Clerical supervisors, principal___________
Cooks............ ..............................................
Draftsmen, junior.................................... .
Draftsmen, senior.........................................
Electricians, maintenance...........................
Elevator operators......... ..............................
Engineering aides, junior............................
Engineering aides, senior..... .......................
Equipment operators, heavy......................
Equipment operators, light.........................
Food workers (except cooks).......................
Food workers, hospital.........................
Food workers, other than hospital.......
Foremen, labor (shop and field)_________
Guards and watchmen (other than prison)
Guards............................ .......................
Watchmen.............................. ..............
Guards, prison ......................... .................
Helpers, any craft_________ ____________
Inspectors, field.............................................
Janitors............................................ ............
Laboratory technicians........ .....................
Laborers (including gardeners)...................,
Gardeners.............................. ................
Laborers................................................
Laundry workers......................................
See footnotes at end of table.




1$2,468
$2,569
3 730
2,194
2,305
2,321
2,570
2,928
2,741
12,854
(2
)
i 2,582 12,608
2,234
2,859
2,978
3,787
5,107
4,340
1,832
1,708
i 1,811
2,467
1,955
2,354
2,327
3,210
31,166 3 1,521
2,129
2,775
i 2,793
3,198
1,495
1,670
2,330
1,619

2,020
1,172
1,144
1,276
1,627
2,693
1,323
i 2,144
1,067
1,067

$2,182 $1,812
3,234
2,349
1,343
3 968
2,082
2,313
2,084
(2
)
3,264
3,786
1,932 i 1,779
2,887 i 2,556
2,896
( 2)
3,496
3,288
4,240
( 2)
1,494 i 1,554
2,150
2,689

(2)

2,303
2,920

2,096
2,704
i 1, 740
2,022
( 2)

2,196
i 1,371
( 2)
1,659
1,436
2,396
2,128
2,111
3,084
2,481
2,173
2,044
1,825
3 1,481 31.029
31.029
3 1,481
2,306
2,153
1,972
i 1,706
1,564 i 1,452
1,747
1,517 i 1,452
i 1,649
1,932
1,523
2,145
1,782
1,957
2,724
2,326
i 1,410
1 1,806
1,375
1 1,921
1,762 i 1,628
1,941
« 1,652
i 1,921
1,762 i 1, 627
1,537
1,436 3 1,131

$2,412
3,185
1,520
2,618
( 2)

( 2)

$3,004

(2

2,861
2,621

2,059
3,128

2,713

"M
OO
( 2)

2,253
( 2)

2,094

(2
)
( 2)
( 2)

2,710

3,128

( 2)

2,114
( 2)
( 2)

1.965
1.966
2,692
2,952
4,004
1,701
2,075
1,917
2,381

2,103
( 2)

2,142
1,963

2, 545
2,005

i2 0
,0 2
1,936
( 2)

2,859
1,884
( 2)

2,064
1,797

2,184
2,115
1,992

2,442

2,040
1,672

2,478
1,661

1,672

1,661

2,962
1,617

3,031
1,621

2,877
1,860
'2,054
1,927
2,096

( 2)

1,709
( 2)

1,708

( 2)

( 2)

2,117
( 2)

3,100
3,445
4,826
5,484
2,374
3,000

(2)

( 2)

2,000

1,940
2,289
2,805

2,528
2,739
3,062

1,662
2,084
(2)
2,820

( 2)

4,046
3,235
1,950
2,445

2,081
1,320
2,066

3,654
2,449

1,899
1,813

2,715
2,319
2,380
2,306

2,163
1,457
1,475
1,395

3,105
2,040

2,331
i 1,318

( 2)

1,834 i 2,019
1,944 i 2,052
1,831
2,031

( 2)

2,601

( 2)

3,838
2,233
3,651
3,090
3,081
3,598

( 2)

3,640

3,004
2,503

2,005
2,049
2,746

( 2)
( 2)

2,950
2,860

2,275
2,939
3,339
1,814
1,930
3,557
3,422
2,152

2,151
2,249
1 1, 710

2,532
1,775
1 2,223
‘ i,‘ 594’ 1 1, 775
1 ! 1 1,968
,6
1,5!
1 1, 773
(2
)

2,252
2,892
2,700
3,278
( 2)

2,162
2,446
2,408
3,242
2,538

27
,6 1
3,352
2,193
2,592
2,610
2,236

$2,297
2,993

1 1,135

2,272
' 2,577
3,650
2,700
1 3,081
2,526
3,149
3,996
1 1,550
1 1,940
1 2,153
1 1,480

2,058

3,208
1 1,298
1,733
1,889
2,618

(2)
$3,049

$2,563
3,061

2,436

2,259
(2)

3,004
3,292
3,768
2.198
2.198
2,452

( 2)

3,049
3,129
2,617

(2)

1 1 86
,6

2,141

1,705
2,562
1,956
1,968 3 1,574
1 1,286
(2)
1,715
2,192
2,132
2,520
1,853 » 1,450
1,357
2,148
1,360
2,088
1,411
2,208
2,084
1,355
1 1,289

2,401

«855
8855

(*
)

1,630
1,973
2,872
3,564
4,240
1,625
2,086
2,187
2,689
2,215
2,617
2,076
1,293
2,463
1,867
1,749

2,113
1,582
1,853
1,288

2,356
2,617

2,541
1,053

2,019
2,273
2,003

1,520
1,556
1,519

T able 4.— Estim ated Average Annual Salaries o f Em ployees in 15 M unicipal Governments, Selected Occupations, by Sex, June 1944— Continued

Occupation and sex

Male—Continued
Librarians.................................... ......
Library aides......................................
Linemen.................. ..........................
Machinists, maintenance...................
Mechanics, water works....................
Office-machine operators...................
Painters........ .....................................
Plumbers.............................................
Pumping-plant engineers...................
Pumping-plant oilers.........................
Recreational leaders...........................
Repairmen, general............................
Sanitarians..........................................
Secretaries.................................... ......
Sewage-plant operators.....................
Stationary engineers..........................
Stationary firemen.............................
Stenographers.....................................
Stock clerks.........................................
Storekeeper supervisors.....................
Switchboard operators.......................
Tree surgeons......................................
Tree trimmers.....................................
Typists...............................................
Typists, junior.............................
Typists, senior.............................
Water-purification operators.............
Water-service men.............................
Female

Account clerks.....................................
Accountants (including supervisors)—
Attendants, hospitals, etc...................
Charwoman..........................................
Clerks, general.....................................
Clerks, senior..................................... .
Clerical, supervisors, except principal.
Clerical supervisors, principal............
Cooks.......... ................... .....................
Dietitians............................................
Elevator operators......... .....................




Atlanta Buffalo Cincin­ Denver Flint
nati

$1,590
1,020

$1,746
$2,398
2,320
2,117

i 2,241
1,623
(2
)
12,412 12,738
13,304 i 3,155
2,821
2,834
1,849
( 2)
2,236
i 2,381 12,089
2,341
2,139
1,794
2,801
1,891
2,331
i 2,163 i 2,670
i 1,938 i 1,946
2,599
1,684
1,777 i 1,561
2,355
i 2,346
1,884
2,040
(2)
1,288

$2,393
2,281
2,882
2,949
3,520
1,940
2,362
( 2)

Gary

1,799
1,682
2 ,10 0

2,987 i 2,523
2,393 i 2,082
2,151
1,560
2,090 1 1,610
2,442 i 2,061

$2,188
2,580

(2
)

3.128
3.128

2,461

$2,276
2,392
1,836

$2,562

1,889
2,231
2,337
1,849

2,546
2,583

Okla­
homa
City

Pitts­
burgh

Port­
St.
land
(Oreg.) Louis

$2,070
1,926

$2,856
3,651
2,146

$2,976

2,420

(2 )
$ 1,200

( 2)

1,640
1,460
i 2,751
2,919
1,980
1,612

Grand Hart­
Rapids ford

2,672
3,546

2,046

3,390
3,651
2,983
2,409
2,160
i 2,467
2,245
2,657

3,259
3,503
2,688

Oak­
land

8
(2 )

2,100

2,274

“ (2
)“"
2,529
2,462
2,165

2,961
2,700
2,220

1,814
2,138
2,196
2,344
1,981
1,753
1,905

2,004
2,146

2,361
2,256

2,492
2,794
( 2)

2,860
1,920
1,758
( 2)

(2
)

$2,940

( 2)

( 2)

(2)

( 2)

1,883

( 2)

2,217

2,295
1,022

1,800
2,220
2,115
2,150
1,440
( 2)
( 2)

( 2)

i 2,438
i 1,955
2,232
11,815
i 1,864
1,773

2,181
2,328
2,543
2,722
( 2)

( 2)

2,047
2,676

( 2)
( 2)

( 2)

( 2)

2,144
1,993

1,874
2,260

1,746
1,743

2,182
2,129
1,792
2,498
2,768
1796 11,295
1,224
3 925
1,221
612
i 948
1,393
11,208 U,672
1,450 11,349
1,501
( 2)
1,449
2,003 11,946
2,305
1,914
3 987
i 1,371 i 1,815
3 1,652 3 1, 756
1,856 i 1,920
J, 198
(2
)

2,031

2,033

2,624
1,965
1,807

1,804
( 2)

( 2)

1,271
1,472
1,554
1,968
1,717
2,321
1,657
2,300
1,342

1,328
1,598
1,890
2,067

2,280
1,935

3 1,059
1,343
1,151
1,988
1,716
1,876

(2)

( 2)

(2 )
( 2)

1,485
1,472
2,083
1,838
2,334

1,740
1,861
( 2)

2,880

1,140
1,578
1,968
( 2)
( 2)

2,082

1,680

1,140

2, 276
1,792
1,830
31,067
11,322
11,607

1
,6
11,246
3 2,006
1,354

(2)

13,234
3,324
( 2)

2,192
1,275
12,088
2,067

1,089

2,599
2,198
3,004

~,1 2
22

2,213
1,706
1,758
2,166
2,120

2,691
1,278

2,644

2,160
2,098
2,273

2,210
( 2)

11,524
1,630
1,408
i 1,650
11,650

( 2)

1,850
i 2,106

2,015

( 2)
(2)

1,965

1,902
1,785
2,011

1,965

( 2)
( 2)

2,237
2,198
2,198

2,190
1,783

11,126
11,050
11,364

$2,398
2,318
2,093
2,046
1,904
( 2)

1,745

(2)

1 1,710
11,537

City X

$ 1,668

( 2)

1,380

( 2)

1,932
1,794
1,822

2,568
( 2)

2,120

( 2)

16
,6 6

2,868

$970
2,711
2,300
1,784

St.
Paul

1,623

2,115
1,716

(2)

2,014

(2)
2,198
i 2,198

1,107
941
1,650
1,907
(2)

i1 2
,0 0

1 2,028
1,165

(2)

Food workers (except cooks)____ _ ______ ____
Food workers, hospital..................................
Food workers, other than hospital............... .
Graduate nurses (including Public Health Service).
Graduate nurses (except Public Health Serv­
ice )............................. — ............................... .
Graduate nurses (Public Health Service).......
Graduate nurse supervisors.................................... .
Housekeepers.................................. ........................ .
Laboratory technicians.............................................
Laborers (including gardeners)................................
Laundry workers..................................................... .
Librarians..................................................................
Library aides.............................................................
Matrons, park.......................................................... .
Matrons, prison....................................................... .
Office-machine operators..........................................
Recreational leaders..................................................
Sanitarians............. - .................................................
Secretaries.................................................................
Social workers, welfare............................................
Stenographers....................................... ...................
Stock clerks.............................................................. .
Switchboard operators........... ................................
Typists.....................................................................
Typists, junior...................................................
Typists, senior...................................................

1,218
1,218
11,411

(4)

1,150
3 1,057

3 841
»889
3815

0)

(*
)

2,072

2,602

i 1,187 i 1,554
1,530
2,168
3 2,512 i 1,930
i 1,056 i 1,374
1,694
12,070
1,514
873
i 756
1,400
i 2,017
1,338
892
1,311
1,949
1,629
"1,218
2,199

1,893 3 1,398
1,881 1 2,192
2,544 3 1,630
3 1,095
(2)
2,159

2,051
2,145
2,551
(2
)
2,310

3 1,429
2,602
1,880

3928
1,667
i 883
1,400
1,605
1,445

1,371
2,019
1,596

1 1,522
i 1,484
i 1,675

1,949

2,015

i 1,415
1,588
1,166
1,630

1,731
1,442
1,303
1,569

2,016 i 1,874
1,875
1,912
1,683 i 1,532
1,050
1,440 1 1,389
1,545
1,507
1,368
1,493
1,961
1,740

i 1,816

1,881
(2
)

1,888

1,229
1,727
1,292
1,434
1,679
1,465

(2
)

2,425 i 1,867

2,051
2,003

i 1,800 31,453
(2
)
1,875
1,849
2,430
1 2,640
(2
)

2,336
1,788
1,050
(2
)

2,057
1,352

1,082
(4
)

2,048

~
i,437

J 1,085
1 1,752
1,054

(2
)

1,834
i 2,172

1,022

2,007

2,389

1,719

1,748
2,040
1,954
1,695
1,672
(2
)

1,675

1,570

1,460

1,518

1,593
1,410
1,389
1,571

1,380

1,566
1,425
1,218
1,543

1,579
1,654
1,513
1,905

11,587

» 2,063
(2
)

1,519
2,302
1,829
1,747

2,021

31,192
1,929
2,012
1,462
1,627

(2
)

2,152
1,674

i 1,040
11,040

1,962 i 1,563
1,631
2,053
(2 3 1,140
) 11,882
2,202 i 1,518

1,230

1 Some workers receive additional compensation in the form of meals and/or lodging, or
other payment in kind, the cash value of which was not estimated. The earnings pre­
sented exclude such compensation.
2 Too few workers to justify presentation of an average.
3 All workers receive additional compensation in the form of meals and/or lodging, or




1,082

1.316
1.316

(2
)

1,761
1,796
2,199
2,020
2,644
1,844

"i,‘ 85i‘

1,373 i 1,629
1,593
1,445
1,320
(2)
1,632
(2
)

1,783
1,716
1,708
(2
)

1,830
1,939
1,914

2,452
2,452

1,756
(2
)

2,003

"1,6

1,161
1,188

1,380
1,700
1,305
1,865
1,633
1,483
1,200
1,319
1.308
1.308

1,756

"i,795
1,503
1,173
(2
)

2,617

1,435
1,821
2,191

1,685
1,3
2,130

'l , 454
1,331
1,300
1,392

1,727

other payment in kind, the cash value of which was not estimated. The earnings pre­
sented include no allowance for such compensation.
* A comparable average for this combination cannot be shown, since all the workers in
one of the two occupations receive additional compensation in the form of meals and/or
lodging or other payments in kind.

T abee 5.— Salary Ranges and Step Rates in Basic Compensation Schedules for Municipal Workers in St. Louis and Cincinnati, June 1944
[ANNUAL RATES i]
Cincinnati schedule2

St. Louis schedule

Step rates2

Step rate on completion of service of—
Classification2

Mini­
mum
rate

Amount
of salary
6 months
5H years range
(proba­ 1H years
(maxi­
2M years 3M years 4H y©ars
tion
mum)
period)

Mini­
mum
rate3

$72C
780
840
900

Ungraded___________

960
$1,176

$1,224

$1,272

$1,320

$300

1,020

Grade 1.........................

$1,020

$1,080

$1,128

Grade 2..........................

1,080

1,140

1,188

1,236

1,284

1,332

1,380

300

1,080
1,100

Grade 3.........................

1,140

1,200

1,248

1,296

1,344

1,392

1,440

300

1,140

Grade 4.........................

1,200

1,260

1,320

1,380

1,440

1,500

1,560

360

1,200*

Grade 5..........................

1,260

1,320

1,380

1,440

1,500

1,560

1,620

360

1,260

Grade 6....... ................ .

1,320

1,380

1,440

1,500

1,560

1,620

1,680

360

1,320

Grade 7.........................

1,380

1,440

1,500

1,560

1,620

1,680

1,740

360

1,380

Grade 8.........................

1,440

1,500

1,560

1,620

1,680

1,740

‘ 1,800

360

1,440

Grade 9.........................

1,500

1,572

1,644

1,716

1,788

1,860

1,920

420

1,500*

Grade 10.......................

1,560

1,644

1,728

1,812

. 1,898

1,968

2,040

480

1,560*

Grade 11.......................
Grade 12........................
Grade 13........................

1,620
1,680
1,740

1,704
1,776
1,836

1,788
1,872
1,932

1,872
1,968
2,028

1,956
2,052
2,112

2,028
2,136
2,196

2,100
2,220
2,280

480
540
540

1,620
1,680
1,740




First

$840
900
900
960

12
,0 0
12
,0 0

1,080
1,080
1.140
1.140

Second

Third

12
,0 0
960
12
,0 0

1,020

1,140
1,080

10
,2 0

1,140*
1,260

$1,020

1,030*
1,140

1 , 200*

1,320

1,260*

1,200
1,260
1.320
1,260
1.320
1.320
1.380
1.380
1.440
1.440
1.500
1.500
1.560
1.560
1,620
1,620
1,680
1,680
1,740
1,800
1,860

1,260
1,380
1,500
1,320*

‘ I,"320*'

1,500*

1,620*

1,800*
1,740*
1,860*
1,920*
1,980*

1.140
1,080
1.140
1,260
1,200

1.320
1,200

1 ,2 0 0

1,560*
1,500*
1,620*
1,560*
1,680*
1,620*
1,740*

Maxi­
mum

1,680
1,380*

1,560*
1,740*
1,620*
1,860*

1,380
1.320
1,440
1.380
1,500
1,860
1.440
1.440
1.380
1,740
1.440
1,680
1,620
1,860
1,680
1,800
1,680
1.980
1,680
1,920
1,800
1.980
2,040
2,100

Amount of salary
range

$240
360
240
180,240
360
240
360
120,180
360
120,180,240
360
180,240
360
720
120.180.240
240
120

240.360.480
120

240.360
120.180.240
240.360.480
120.180.240
240.360
120,180
240.360.480
120

240, 360
120,180
240.360
240.360
240.360

ls>
O

Grade 14.

1,800

1,908

2,016

2,112

2,208

Grade 15.

1,920

2,028

2,136

2,232

2,328

2,010

2,148

2,256

2,352

2,448

Grade 17.

2,160

2,268

2,376

2,472

2,568

Grade 18.

2,280

2,400

2,520

2,640

2,760

Grade 19.

2,400

2,520

2,640

2,760

2,880

Grade 20.

2,520

2,676

2,832

2,988

3,132

Grade 21.

2,820

2,976

3,132

3,288

3,432

Grade 16.

.

See footnotes at end of table.




2,400

600

2,520

600

2,640

600

2,703

600

3,000

720

3,120

720

3,420

900

1
1,800* {
l
1,860*
1,920*
1,980
2,000
2,040
2,100* /
\
2,160
2,000
2,217
2,220*
2,280 /
\
2,300
2,340
/
2,400* \
2,448
f
2,460* |
1
2,520*
2,580
2,640* /
\
2,688

900

240,360,480
540
400
240,360
120,240,360
240,360,480

2,400*

2.520
2,460
2,640
2.520

240,360,480
120,240,360
540
120,240,360

2,580*
2,640*

2,700
2,760
2,820

240,360,480
120,240,360,480
540

2,700
2,760
2,940

240,360
120,240,360
540

2,700
3.180
3.180
2,880
3.120
3.120
3,360

120,240
540,720
720
240,360
540
360,480
540,720

3.120

3,060
3,240
3,600
3,000
3,300

360
540
900
240
540

3,180

3,360

540

3,280

3,120
3,420

240
540

3,480
3,420

3,360
3,720
3,600

360
720
540

2,100*
2,160*
2,220*

2,160
2,220*
2,280
2,280*

2,280*
2,340*
2,460
2,400*

2,340
2,400*
2,460

2,460*
2,520*
2,640

2,460
2,520*
2,580

2,580*
2,640*
2,760

2,580*
2,640
2,700
2,640
2,760
2,760
2,820

2,820
2.940
2,760*
2.940
2,880
3,000

2,820
• 2,880
3,000
2,760* \ 2,880
2,940
2,794
2,820
3,000
2,856
3,000
2,880* / 3,060
\
2,904
2,952
? 3,180
3,000 \ 3,240
3,060
3,240
3,072
2,700

3,720

2,280
2,340
2,200
2,220
2,280
2,460

1,920
1,980
2,000
1,980
2,040*
2,100




2,040*
2,160

2,940
3,060
3,300

2,160*

2,340*

3,000*

3,000*
3,180*

T able 5.— Salary Ranges and Step Rates in B asic Compensation Schedules fo r M unicipal W orkers in St. Louis and Cincinnati, June 1944 — Con.
St. Louis schedule

Cincinnati schedule2

Step rate on completion of service of—
Classification2

Grade 22........................

Grade 23.......................

Mini­
mum
rate

$3,120

3,420

6 months
(proba­
1H years 2^ years
tion
period)

$3,276

3,576

$3,432

3,732

$3,588

3,888

y ears

$3,732

4,032

Step rates3

Amount
salary
5H years ofrange
years (maxi­
mum)

$3,876

4,176

$4,020

4,320

$900

900

Mini­
mum
rate3

$3, 120
3, 180
3, 192
3, 220
3, 240
3, 264
3, 300
3, 360
3, 420
3, 480
3, 500
3, 600*

Grade 24........................

3,720

3,876

4,032

4,188

4,332

4,476

4,620

900

3,660
3,720
3,780

Grade 25........................

3,900

4,056

4,212

4,368

4,512

4,656

4,800

900

3,960
4,020

Grade 26... ....................

4,200

4,356

4,512

4,668

4,812

4,956

5,100

900

Grade 27........................

4,500

4,656

4,812

4,968

5,112

5,256

5,400

900

4,260
4,320
4,500*




Maxi­
mum

Amount of salary
range

First

Second

$3,300
3.360
3,360

$3,480
3.600
3,540

$3,660
3.840
3; 720

$540
720
540

3,420

3,600

3,780

540

3,480
3,540
3,540
3,600
3,600
3,660
3,660
3,720

3,660
3,780

3,840
4,020
3,720
4,080
3,960
4,140
4,020
4,200

540
720
360
480,720
540
720
540
720

4,140
4,320
4,500
4,020
4,080
4,320
4,500
4,500
4,560
4,740
4,980
5,220
5,400

540
720
900
360
360
540
720
540
540
240, 480, 720
720
900
900

3,780
3,840
3,900
3,840
3,900
3,960
4,020
4,140
4,200
4, 260*
4,500
4,620
4,800

3,84Q*
3,780
3,900
3,840
3,960
3,960
4,080
4,200
4,140
4,260
4,320
4,380
4,500*
4,740
4,920
5,100

Third

tO
to

Grade 28........................

4,800

5,004

5,208

5,412

5,616

5,808

Grade 29........................
Grade 30.......................

5,400
6,000

5,604
6,204

5,808
6,408

6,012
6,612

6,216
6,816

6,408
7,008

Grade 31........................
Grade 32.......................

6,600
7,200

6,804
7,344

7,008
7,476

7,212
7,608

7,416
7,740

7,608
7,872

1 The monthly rates of the St. Louis plan have been converted to annual rates to facili­
tate comparison with the Cincinnati schedule.
3 Asterisks indicate rates that are also maximums for some jobs.




6,000

1,200

6,600
7,200

1,200
1,200

7,800
8,004

1,200
804

4,800
5.000
5,100
5,400
6.000
6,300
6,500

5,100

5,400

5,700

900

5,400
5,700
6,300
6,500
6,600
7,000

5,700

6,000
6,000
6,900
7,500
7,200
8,000

900
600
900
1,500
900
1,500

6,600
7,000
6,900
7,500

2 In this table for convenience of comparison, the Cincinnati rates are presented opposite
the corresponding grades for St. Louis, although in Cincinnati in actual practice no
grade classification is used.




T a b l e 6. — Provisions o f Pension-Fund Systems in Effect in 15 M unicipal Governments, June 1944
Contributions by—
City

Coverage

Service requirements

Benefits
City

Employees
Atlanta-.........

All except a few em-

Buffalo...........

All automatically under
State system on ap­
pointment.
All 1ut policemen and
b
firemen.

Cincinnati___
City X ...........

Police and fire depart­
ments.

Denver...........

Police and fire depart­
ments.
Water and
education depart ­
ments have funds in­
dependent of civil
service.
Police, fire, and educationd epartmeats only.

Flint..............
Gary..............
Grand Rapids.

Hartford.........

Oakland

Oklahoma City.




salary at time of retirement, 3 percent of wages....................
Formerly 25 years; for the
“ duration,” 15 years.
but not over $100 a month.
May retire at 60; must at 70. _ _ Annuity and pension of H40 Equal amounts in accordance
with rate chart issued by
of final average salary, mul­
State office.
tiplied by years of service.
May retire at 60; must at 70_ _ yjo of average salary for last Based on actuarial tables........
10 years, multiplied by years
■ of service.
Voluntary retirement after 20 (l) ................................. Department fines, fees, etc.,
and general city revenues,
years of service.
or other sources prescribed
by the council.
Police—Fines, gifts, etc. Fire—
Police may retire at 60, with 0.
By levies on salaries. 4
20 years of service.2

Police and fire—25 years of
service. 4

Police and fire—Retire at H
pay.5

Police department only. Voluntarv retirement after 20
years of service; compulsory
at 65.
All but board of educa­ Retirement at 70 until Oc­
tion, which has a sepa­
tober 1949, then at 65 except
by special consent of the
rate plan.
board.
All except certain fire Varying conditions for men
at 60 or 65, for women at 55
and police and school
or 60.
department employ-

Minimum, $50 a month plus
2 percent for each year after
25 years of service.
Usually lH percent of average
salary multiplied by years
of service.

All but fire and police,
who have independent
funds, and certain
elective officers.
Fire and police depart­
ments only.

2 percent of average salary for
last 5 years multiplied by
years of service.

At 62, after 10 years service; or
after 30 years; compulsory
retirement at 70.

0)

Fire—Retire after 20 years of
service. Police—Retire at
65.

Fire—Retire on H pay. Po­
lice—Retire on average of
salary for last 10 years.

Matching sum.
Equal amounts in accordance
with rate chart issued by
State office.
Based on liabilities as shown
by actuarial valuation.
Department fines, fees, etc.,
and general city revenues,
or other sources prescribed
by the council.
Council appropriations.4

Department rewards, etc.; also
proceeds of taxes raised by
the commission.
$2 a month from each employee General levy of 2 cents per
$100 of property valuation.
eligible for benefits.
Police and fire—1 percent of
pay.4

4 percent of pay....... ................ Appropriations sufficient
maintain the plan.
2l percent of pay except cer­
A
tain teachers, who contribute
lH percent.
Determined
tables.

by

to

Annual appropriation to meet
deficit.

actuarial Based on actuarial tables for
employees.

Fire—Financed by charge qp Fire—Financed by charge on
fire-insurance premiums paid
fire-insurance premiums paid
in the State. Police—2 per­
in the State. Police—10 per­
cent of police department
cent of salaries.
pay roll.

Pittsburgh.

Portland (Oreg.)

St. Louis •
.
St. Paul..

All but fire and police,
some in other pension
funds, and day la­
borers who choose not
to participate.
Fire and police depart­
ments only.

All automatically, ex­
cept elective officers
who have option of
joining.

Retire at 60 after 20 years or
more of service.

50 percent of average pay for
last 5 years, but not more
than $125 a month.

2 to 4 percent of monthly sal­
ary, but not more than $10.

Fire—Retire at 50 with 25
years of service or at 55 with
20 years.
Police—Retire
after 25 years of service or at
50 with 20 years.

Fire—$75 a month for 25 years
service; up to 30, additional
$2 a month. Police—H sal­
ary, class O patrolman.

Fire—Fines, etc., and 4 per­
cent of first-class fire­
fighter salary.
P olice Fines, etc., and
percent
of class O patrolman salary.

Varying requirements. Mini­
mum retirement age, 50.

Varying benefits—Minimum
$64; maximum, $150 a month.

Fire and police departments,
2 percent; health, 1 percent;
other employees 4 percent of
salaries.

1 Data not available.
2 Data for fire department not available.
8 Data for police and fire departments not available.
4Both police and fire contributions supplemented by State funds.




“A sum sufficient to meet pen­
sions due.”

For fire and police only, H the
cost of their annuities.

* Data for education department not available.
* System authorized by city charter, but not yet established. When it is, it will not
apply to the police, fire, and school departments or to the city library.

T a ble 7.— Vacation and "Sick-Leave Policies 1 o f 15 M unicipal Governments, June 1944
Vacation policies

Sick-leave^ policies

City
Coverage

_
Atlanta_
Buffalo___
Cincinnati.
C i t y X ....
Denver___
Flint.................
Gary................ .
Grand Rapids..
Hartford............
Oakland............
Oklahoma City.
Pittsburgh........
V. S .

Portland (Oreg.)..........

Eligibility requirement

Usual length of paid vacation

All departments......... ......... 1 year of service....................
All departments............. ...... None. At discretion of de­
partment head.
All departments.................... P erm anent employment
status.
All regular city departments. Completion of probation___
Police and fire departments. None stipulated___________

2 weeks..............
2 weeks..............

All departments.................... 1 year of service___
[Public library...................... . 1 year of service___
Fire department................... 1 year of service—
[Schools, except teachers....... 9 months of service.
(All departments except li­ 6 months'of service
brary.
[Library................. ...... ......... 1 year of service___
All covered by personnel 6 months of service.
system.
All city employees...... ......... None stipulated_
_
All city employees................ 1 year of service___
All city employees................ 1 year of service___

2 weeks. _
2-3 weeks.
19 days...
1-2 weeks.
1 w eek...

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE!

Appointive officers and em­
ployees.
St. Louis....................... Permanent employees in
classified service.
St. Paul........................ Regular and probationary
employees.

12 working days.
1 day per mo.
15 days..........

2 weeks...............................
1 working day per calendar
month.
1 day per month...................
15 calendar days...................
2 weeks...... ...........................

None stipulated.................... 15 working days....................
6 months of full-time service.. 9 days; then 1H days per
month.
None stipulated.................... 15 days..................................

Coverage

()
2.............. <).
*
Any employee after 1 year of

15 days.
service.
All departments.................... 12 working days.

All regular city departments. 1 day per month.
Police and fire departments . Duration of “ temporary disa­
bility" received in performance
of duty.

<■
*
>
>)
(2

(2
).

00 .

K2 - ...........................................
)

(2
).

All covered by personnel
system.
All city employees...............
All city employees...............
All city employees...............

1 working day per month of serv-

Permanent appointive offi­
cers and employees.
Regular municipal depart­
ments.
Regular and probationary
employees.

* Only general provisions are shown in this table. A few exceptions and special provisions are discussed in the text. * No data available.




Usual length of paid vacation

After 1 year, 30 days a year.
10 days a year.
14 days, except public works (30
days).
1H days per month of service.
2 working days per month.
12 days.

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