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I mpact of O f f ic e A utomation

THE

Jntemai {Revenue Sewice

A Study of the Manpower Implications
During the First Stages of the Changeover

Bulletin No. 1364

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
W. W illard Wirtz, Secretary
BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS
Ewan Clague, Commissioner

OTHER BLS PUBLICATIONS ON AUTOMATION AND PRODUCTIVITY
Industrial Retraining Programs for Technological Change (Bulletin 1368, 1963).

Forthcoming.

A study of the performance of older workers based on four case studies of industrial plants.
Impact of Technological Change and Automation in the Pulp and Paper Industry (Bulletin 1347, 1962), 92 pp.,
50 cents.
Surveys the nature, status, and outlook of technological innovations and implications for productivity,
production, employment, occupational requirements, and industrial relations practices. Includes three case
studies of recent technological innovations.
Implications of Automation and Other Technological Developments:
(Bulletin 1319, 1962), 136 pp., 65 cents.

A Selected Annotated Bibliography

Describes over 500 books, articles, reports, speeches, conference proceedings, visual aids, and other
readily available materials published primarily since 1956.
Technological Change and Productivity in the Bituminous Coal Industry. 1920-60 (Bulletin 1305, 1961),
136 pp., 65 cents.
Trends in technology and productivity and implications for employment, unemployment, wages, prices,
and profits.
Impact of Automation (Bulletin 1287, I960), 114 pp.

Out of print, available in libraries.

A collection of 20 articles about technological change, from the Monthly Labor Review.
Adjustments to the Introduction of Office Automation (Bulletin 1276, 1960), 86 pp., 50 cents.
A study of some implications of the installation of electronic data processing in 20 offices in private
industry, with special reference to older workers.
Studies of Automatic Technology (Free).
A series of case studies of plants introducing automation. Describes changes and implications for
productivity, employment, occupational requirements, and industrial relations.
A Case Study of a Company Manufacturing Electronic Equipment.
The Introduction of an Electronic Computer in a Large Insurance Company.
A Case Study of a Large Mechanized Bakery (Report 109).
A Case Study of a Modernized Petroleum Refinery (Report 120).
A Case Study of an Automatic Airline Reservation System (Report 137).
Indexes of Output per Man-Hour for Selected Industries. 1939 and 1947-61.
(October 1962), 44 pp. Free.

Annual Industry Series

Indexes of output per man-hour, output per employee, and unit labor requirements for 22 industries,
including coal and metal mining, various foods and fibers, basic steel, etc.
Trends in Output per Man-Hour in the Private Economy, 1909-1958 (Bulletin 1249, 1959), 93 pp., 50 cents.
Indexes of output per man-hour, output, and employment in major sectors.
affecting changes.

Analysis of trends and factors

Sales publications may be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D. C., or from
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available, as long as the supply lasts, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor,
Washington 25, D. C.
Regional Offices:
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Boston 10, Mass.

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Impact

Office A utomation
in THE

internal ^avenue Senaece

A Study of the Manpower Implications
During the First Stages of the Changeover

Bulletin No. 1364

July 1963

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
W. Willard Wirtz, Secretary
BUREAU O F LABOR STATISTICS
Ewan Clague, Commissioner

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 2 0 4 0 2 - Price 45 cents

Preface

Concerted efforts to improve efficiency through automation, without
causing hardships on employees, are likely to be among the key challenges of
public administration in the 1960's. According to Bureau of the Budget esti
mates, the Federal Government will have about 1,500 computers in use by mid1966, a 50 percent increase over the number in mid-1962.
This study describes the manpower impact of the introduction of a
large-scale electronic computer system in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
a key Federal Agency with more than 50,000 employees.
The report covers:
Nature and objectives of the conversion, planning of manpower changes, admin
istration of personnel procedures, impact on employees, staffing of automatic
data processing (ADP) jobs, training and retraining of employees, manpower
problems, and employment outlook. The experiences described should be useful
to other Government Agencies and to private organizations where large-scale
technological changes are being planned. Chairman of the Civil Service
Commission John W. Macy, Jr., is hopeful that in the IRS conversion ". . .
we will have developed some workable formulas for facilitating future
transitions."
The report is based on interviews with IRS officials and employees,
statistical data collected especially for the study, public documents, and
internal IRS memoranda. Representatives from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
visited offices in the IRS Atlanta region and interviewed employees, super
visors, and union officials concerned with the new ADP system to obtain first
hand knowledge of problems which arose and techniques developed to alleviate
them.
IRS officials and employees were extremely helpful and cooperative
in gathering information for this report. Special acknowledgment is due
A.J. Schaffer, Director of Personnel, and J.R. Stone, J.G. Fowler, G.H. Finn,
and L.W. Peeler of his staff.
In Atlanta, Regional Commissioner U.J. Bookholt,
James Corley, Jr., Mary King, and the district and service center directors
and their staffs provided valuable assistance.
The study is part of the Bureau of Labor Statistics research
program on the progress and implications of productivity and technological
change and is designed to support the Labor Department's activities in carrying
out the objectives of the Manpower Development and Training Act. This bulle
tin was prepared by Richard Riche and James Alliston, under the supervision of
Edgar Weinberg, Chief of the Bureau's Division of Technological Studies, under
the general direction of Leon Greenberg, Assistant Commissioner for Productiv
ity and Technological Developments.

Contents
Page
Highlights and summary ............... . . . . . . .
............. • •
Background ........ • • • • • • • • • . . . .
............. . . . .
Planning manpower changes
................. • • • • .......... . • •
Administering manpower policies
................. • • • • • • • • •
Impact on e m p l o y e e s ............................. ..................
Major occupational c h a n g e s ......................... .. .............
Recruiting and selecting ADP employees . . ............ . . . . . . .
Training and retraining ............................................
Some manpower problems . . . . ................. • • • . • • • • • •
Outlook for manpower changes . . ....................................
Chapter 1. Background . * • • • • • « • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . •
Growth of paperwork .............................. ..................
Past changes in technology and organization .......................
Chapter 2. Introducing automatic dataprocessing
.
...
Initial steps • • . • • . . .
......................................
The new data processing s y s t e m ......................................
Organizational changes . . . ........................................
Objectives of the system . . ..................... • • • • • • • • •
Manpower in the changeover.............. .. ................ • • • •
Chapter 3. Planning manpower changes
...............................
Manpower policies
• • • ...................................... .. • .
Exploring manpower problems
.......................
Informing e m p l o y e e s ................
•
Consulting employee organizations
.......... • • • • • • ........
Chapter 4. Administering manpower policites .........................
Reassigning displaced employees
......................... . . . . .
Measures to facilitate placement ................. • • • • • • • • •
Early retirement of displaced employees . . . . .
...
Use of temporary e m p l o y e e s ................. ............. .. • • • .
Use of temporary promotions
....................... .. • • •
Restriction on h i r i n g ..................
Chapter 5. Impact on employees
. . . . . ...........................
Age and sex of affected employees ................. • • • . • • • •
Educational level
.......................
Federal service and retirement eligibility ................. . . . .
Occupational background .......................... . • • ...........
Projected changes in employment and occupationalrequirements . . .
Impact at midconversion • • . • • • • • •
........ • • • • • • • •
Chapter 6. Staffing ADP positions ...................................
Number and location of ADP positions
.......... .. • • •
Recruitment and s e l e c t i o n ....................
.
Staffing the Martinsburg Center ....................................
Staffing the Atlanta Service Center • • • • • • • • • •
..........
Source of ADP personnel
............................ .. .............
Characteristics of ADP employees ..........

iii

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Contents--Continued
Page
Chapter 7. Training and retraining employees ........ . .............
Employee training programs
......................... . . . . . . . .
Retraining affected employees ......................... . ........ •
Training for ADP jobs ................................ ................
Chapter 8. Manpower problems of the changeover . . . . . . .
........
Obstacles to m o b i l i t y ..............
Maintenance of adequate communications . ................... . . . .
Placement problems ..................................................
Training p r o b l e m s ................
Increased stress and shiftwork ......................................
Recruiting specialized employees
....................................
Chapter 9. Outlook for manpower c h a n g e s ................ ............
Placement of employees
..............................................
Incentives for mobility .......... . ............... . . . . . . . .
Future i n n o v a t i o n s .............................
Implications for community employment ........ . . . . . ..........
Research outlook ....................................................
Tables:
1. IRS workload and employment, selected years, 1930-60
. . . . . .
2. ADP conversion schedule and personnel impact, by region .........
3. Atlanta region: Employment in affected units, by district
office, fiscal years 1960-62 and projected, 1966 . . . ........
4. Atlanta region: Age of affected employees, by sex . . . . . . .
5. Atlanta region: Educational level of affected employees, by age
g r o u p ..............................................
6. Atlanta region: Years of Federal Government service of affected
employees, by age g r o u p ..............
7. Atlanta region: Age and sex of affected employees, by
occupational group ...............................
• • • • • • •
8. Atlanta region: Projected change in supervisory jobs for
affected operations for a large district office
. . ..........
9. Atlanta region: Average grade and distribution of jobs by grade,
affected district units and Atlanta Service Center, before and
after ADP .............................. ................ .. • • •
10. Atlanta region: Progress of employment changeover in affected
units of district offices, July 1960 to July 1962 .............
11. ADP employment, by occupation and location, as of April 1962 . .
12. Source of ADP employees, by occupational group ........... ..
13. Age and sex of ADP employees, by occupational g r o u p .............
14. Occupational background of ADP employees, by selected ADP
occupations
........ • • • • • . • • • • •
................. •
15. Contents and length of retraining courses .......................
16. Training programs for ADP occupations .......................... .

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Contents--Continued
Page
Charts:
1. ADP information f l o w ..............................................
2. Atlanta region: Projected changes in occupational groups in
affected units and service center, 1960-66 # . .................
3. Atlanta region: Educational level of employees in affected units
and in ADP . . . . . ............................................
Appendixes:
A. Tables:
A-l. Total district office employment and employees in affected
units, by district, July 1961
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
A-2. Atlanta region: Age and sex of affected employees, by
district offices . . . • • • • • • • . . • •
.......... . .
A-3. Atlanta region: Years of Federal Government service of
affected employees, by retirement age group • . • • ........
A-4. Description of job duties in clerical classifications
. . . .
A-5. Atlanta region:
Projected changes in occupational require
ments for affected district units and Atlanta Service Center
A-6. Grade of ADP employees, by occupation ........................
A-7. Years of IRS service, all ADP employees and affected
employees in Atlanta r e g i o n s ................. ..............
B. First issue of ADP News (page 1 ) ..................................
C. Qualifications inventory card . . . . ..........
. . . . . . . .
D. Checklist for filling vacancies occurring before and during ADP .
E. Recruitment announcement, The Digital Computer Programmer in the
Internal Revenue Service
. . . . . . ............... . ........
F. Automatic data processing supervisory evaluation .................
G. Selected bibliography on government automation ................. .

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IMPACT OF OFFICE AUTOMATION IN THE
INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE

Highlights and Summary
The introduction of automatic data processing (ADP) continued
efforts over the years by the Internal Revenue Service to find ways of han
dling more efficiently a growing volume of tax returns and documents. During
the changeover to a large-scale electronic computer system, the IRS developed
innovations in manpower policies and procedures to maintain job security and
to utilize the skills of affected employees by productive placements. These
measures have broad significance as guidelines for orderly adjustments to
office automation.
This bulletin covers the general background of the conversion and
some specific manpower developments in offices in the Atlanta region, which
comprises seven Southern States. The conversion will not be completed in
Atlanta until 1966, and nationally until 1968. Therefore, the full impact has
not yet been felt.
Background
A decision to install ADP was reached in March 1959, following more
than a year of extensive exploration of technical feasibility by IRS planning
experts. The changeover involved establishing a comprehensive data processing
system, requiring the introduction of electronic computers, a taxpayer identi
fication system, a centralized master file of taxpayer accounts on magnetic
tape, and significant changes in organization, manpower, and flow of work.
The original plans provided that many of the routine data processing tasks in
62 district offices will be centralized and processed on computers at 9 new
regional computer (or service) centers and the National Computer Center at
Martinsburg, W. Va.
(A recent decision will reduce the number of regions from
9 to 8, regional service centers from 9 to 7, and eliminate 4 district offices.)
Enforcement and public information and assistance activities will remain in the
district offices. The new data system is expected to result in the processing
of a much greater workload without a commensurate increase in employment and to
lead to more efficient and effective enforcement of tax laws. Computer proc
essing first began in December 1961.
Planning Manpower Changes
A unique aspect of the IRS approach to the changeover was the extraor
dinary attention given at top levels of management to manpower as well as tech
nical planning. Experts were charged with full-time responsibility for planning
the manpower shift. At an early stage of the conversion, the IRS Commissioner
announced a policy of maintaining job security for affected employees by
avoiding, if at all possible, layoffs, downgradings, and compulsory relocation.
As part of this policy, the changeover in each region was scheduled over sev
eral years to allow enough time to retrain and reassign affected employees.

About 5,000 routine office jobs across the Nation are expected to be elimi
nated or shifted to regional service centers by July 1968; at the same time,
a greater number of new jobs will be created in regional centers to do much
more work. Thousands of additional jobs may be indirectly affected by
required reassignments.
Administering Manpower Policies
In cushioning the impact of ADP on employees, the IRS, with Civil
Service Commission support, was willing to explore new approaches, and to
adjust and modify usual personnel policies to meet the special needs posed
by an extraordinarily large scale adjustment problem.
Hie IRS approach
required that considerable attention be given to the problems of individual
employees.
To facilitate transfer of employees to vacant jobs, the IRS took an
inventory of the skills of employees in the affected units, made efforts to
match displaced employees and job openings, gave employees counseling and
guidance about job opportunities, and offered training to improve employee
qualifications. The emphasis was to give employees in directly affected
activities full opportunity to transfer voluntarily to other jobs, either
those vacated through attrition in unaffected units or to new jobs opening in
the new regional centers.
To make placement of affected employees easier, the Civil Service
Commission allowed the IRS to relax certain qualification standards for posi
tions and to extend periods of temporary appointments and assignments. The
use of attrition, as a means of reducing employment, was encouraged and
retirement possibilities were clearly explained to eligible employees whose
jobs were to be eliminated. The hiring of new employees on a permanent basis
was restricted and the hiring of temporary employees to carry on necessary
activities was expanded. Special attention was also given to keeping employ
ees informed, improving communications between national, regional, and district
offices, and to consulting with employee organizations. Finally, IRS officials
contacted other Federal agencies to locate positions for affected employees.
Impact on Employees
The conversion in the Atlanta region, the first area to adopt ADP,
was estimated to involve directly about 1,000 of more than 4,000 employees
working in units of 7 district offices. These affected employees were pri
marily older women with most of their working experience in Government.
Their duties mainly involved manual processing of tax returns. The remaining
3,000 employees, who were only indirectly affected, worked in enforcement and
public information and assistance activities. Of the jobs directly affected,
the IRS estimated that nearly 500 will be eliminated by July 1966. Although
a greater number of jobs are being created in the Atlanta regional center,
many require different skills. Moreover, all are located outside the commuting
area of most affected employees.
The impact may be cushioned since about

one-fifth of the affected group was eligible (in January 1962) for a retire
ment annuity. However, some of those eligible may not be willing or
financially able to retire.
During the first 2 years of the changeover (July 1960-July 1962),
permanent employment in affected units was cut back by 234 employees or 22
percent, partly by attrition and partly by reassignment of employees to other
jobs in enforcement and public information and assistance work, not directly
affected. Of the reassigned employees, 90 relocated in another city.
Nearly
all moves were less than 500 miles.
No employee was laid off.
Major Occupational Changes
According to occupational projections through July 1966, significant
changes are expected in job structure in the affected work. Routine clerical
work, involving posting, checking and maintaining records, and lower grade
supervisory levels in the districts will show a substantial decline.
A great
increase in card punch and related jobs at the service center will be needed
to prepare data for ADP.
In district offices, public information and assist
ance and correspondence work will be expanded because of enlarged enforcement
activities.
New ADP jobs for managing, planning, and programing were created.
By July 1962, 261 persons in the IRS were engaged in eight ADP occupations
(excluding card punch operators) needed for the new Master File system. Over
two-thirds of the 261 employees were programers and management or systems
analysts; about one-fifth, managers and administrators; the rest were console
and equipment operators, schedulers, and tape librarians. Over three-fourths
were located in Washington, where programing was centralized. Only 32 were
located in the Atlanta center, and they comprised only a small percent of total
employment at the center. The rest operated the National Computer Center in
Martinsburg, W. Va.
Recruitinn and Selecting ADP Employees
The IRS primarily recruited from within, in order to utilize employee
skills and experience. About 4 out of 5 ADP employees initially selected for
the eight ADP occupations were IRS employees, most of whom had technical or
supervisory experience.
Key ADP jobs were filled through a systematic selec
tion procedure which included written tests, interviews, and supervisory
evaluations.
Those who applied and were selected for planning and programing
jobs typically were young men with a relatively high educational level. Rela
tively few district office employees whose jobs were scheduled for elimination
were selected for ADP jobs. Most of the managerial and supervisory positions
at the service center, exclusive of ADP positions, were filled by transfers
from the districts.

Training and Retraining
An important feature of the IRS manpower program was the effort to
retrain those employees in jobs to be eliminated in the Atlanta region and to
train those selected for ADP jobs. The IRS* experience in conducting training
programs for administering new tax laws proved valuable in this changeover.
First, all district office employees, directly or indirectly affected by the
change, were given opportunities to attend IRS classes in accounting and
income tax law so that they might qualify for other jobs. Between July 1960
and July 1962, 241 employees working in the affected units completed one or
more classroom courses. Several employees completed 6 courses. Most train
ing was given after working hours because of skills shortages, heavy workloads
and necessary overtime.
Second, full-time specialized classroom and on-thejob training during working hours was given those employees who transferred
from affected jobs to other permanent jobs. Classes for some types of tech
nical work were conducted in a central location and employees attending from
other localities received travel allowances.
Third, the IRS gave employees
selected for certain new ADP jobs--programers, systems analysts, and ADP
administrators--several weeks of expense-paid, full-time classroom training
at centralized locations, followed by lengthy on-the-job training. Equipment
operators received about a week of formal training by the equipment
manufacturer.
Some Manpower Problems
Although the first stages of the changeover (1960-62) have been
described as successful by the IRS, some manpower problems involving employee
mobility, retraining, reassignment, stress, communications, program delays,
and recruitment arose. Some affected district office employees hesitated to
take new jobs in Atlanta. Key obstacles mentioned by affected employees were
fear of financial loss on sale of a house, concern over loss of spouse's job,
and uncertainty about the relative cost of living in a different community.
The extent to which employees were reluctant to relocate was not fully antici
pated by the manpower planning experts. Another problem, also not fully
expected, was uncertainty among some affected employees about the potential
effects of ADP on their jobs. As a result, the IRS found it necessary to
offer employees encouragement to participate in retraining and to accept trans
fers and relocation.
Some employees, especially women with family responsi
bilities, were reluctant to take training because it was given after working
hours. A few employees and managers reported greater mental stress as more
overtime and greater responsibility were required during the changeover period
and as shiftwork on ADP operations was introduced. Finally, recruiting card
punch operators constituted a serious problem for management because of the
difficulty in locating experienced operators and supervisors.
Outlook for Manpower Changes
An estimated 28 percent reduction of jobs (230 jobs) is planned
during 1962-66, the final phase of the changeover in the Atlanta region. The

total decline will amount to about 51 percent between 1960-66. Although this
impact may be reduced as manpower needs are reassessed, manpower changes may
become increasingly difficult to administer during this phase. Factors which
could help to avoid layoffs include the availability of funds for a sufficient
number of jobs in other IRS activities, continued attrition, and greater
willingness of employees to relocate to offices where jobs are available.
The final stages may require that even more attention be directed to counsel,
guide, and retrain those employees who remain in jobs to be eliminated and to
assist them in relocating.
New manpower issues will probably arise as ADP technology is further
developed and extended.
The experience in the Atlanta region will be useful
in modifying the original guidelines for application in the other IRS regions.
The possible use of optical scanning, electronic transmission, and other auto
mation systems now under consideration will probably create new problems for
manpower planning.
The IRS conversion to ADP involves elimination of large numbers of
clerical jobs on which the communities in the region may have relied and the
creation of some new jobs with different requirements.
These changes may
affect labor market conditions and require attention by community educational,
guidance and placement services, concerned with opportunities for the growing
labor force of the 1960‘s.
This study suggests that a better understanding of factors affecting
employee mobility could be especially helpful to any large organization in
planning orderly adjustments to technological changes.

Chapter I.

Background

The framework for m o d e m tax collection was established in
July 1862, when President Lincoln created an Office of the Commissioner of
Internal Revenue in the Treasury Department. The first Commissioner began
with a staff of one clerk and personally read all letters received from tax
payers. Today this office is the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), employing
more than 50,000 persons in offices across the country.
Growth of Paperwork
The paperwork associated with collecting taxes has grown tremen
dously, especially during and after World War II. Enforcing the tax laws in
I960 required processing more than 400 million documents annually (including
over 94 million tax returns) and mailing out millions of forms, bllls; and
notices.
In 1930, only 6 million returns were filed. The IRS estimates
that by 1970, the volume of returns could reach 114 million.
The Increasing paperwork reflects not only the expanding population
and tax base, but also the greater complexity of tax laws. The creation of
exceptions and special cases and proliferation of taxpayer categories con
tributes to the ever-growing workload.
Past Changes in Technology and Organization
Over the years, the IRS has made major improvements in its equip
ment and methods. Bookkeeping and other office machines were introduced at
an early date. But the massive growth in workload resulting from excise
taxes, extensions of social security, and increases in tax returns and re
lated documents required continued improvements.
After World War II, IRS management gave high priority to increasing
mechanization and tailoring the organizational structure and work flow to
assembly-line processing. Card punch and materials-handling equipments were
Installed in several of the larger field offices. Although improvements were
made, these Individual offices lacked sufficient work volume to achieve maxi
mum potential savings in labor and other costs.
The centralization of mechanized data processing at the Kansas City
(Mo.) center, in 1954, was a milestone in tax information handling. The new
center used card punch tabulating and calculating machines to process a num
ber of short-form income tax returns (Form 1040-A) from several midwestern
districts with such efficiency that additional work was transferred to the
center and similar mechanized centers were opened in Massachusetts and Utah.

The IRS also made extensive changes In organization and management
techniques during the latter half of the 1950's. District offices were re
organized, a work planning and control system was developed, and an executive
development program was initiated. A planning and research group was estab
lished to investigate and appraise methods of improving the efficiency of
operations.
The growth of the IRS workload and employment from 1930 to 1960
Is shown in table 1. The volume of work Increased substantially, but the
employment rise was relatively smaller. Returns filed per employee--a rough
indicator of productivity--more than doubled between 1940 and I960.

Table 1.

IRS workload and employment, selected years, 1930-60
Fiscal year
1930

1940

1950

1960

Percent
Increase
1930-60

5.9

19.2

89.3

94.4

1,500

0.3
$3.0
2.0
492

21.0
$5.3
22.4
857

(1/)
$39.0
55.6
1,606

325.0
$91.8
50.2
1,880

3,055
2,960
318
282

Item

Tax returns filed (millions) •.
Information documents received
(millions) ...................
Revenue collected (billions) ..
Employees (thousands) ........
Returns filed per employee ....

Not available.

Source:

Internal Revenue Service.

Despite improvements in efficiency, it became apparent that the
growing workload could not be handled effectively merely by expanding employ
ment and retaining conventional data processing equipment. By the late 1950's,
for example, the IRS had to curtail certain enforcement and revenue producing
activities, such as verification of forms W-2 filed by employees with wages
shown on returns. Management, therefore, decided to explore the feasibility
of using high-speed electronic computers for processing the documents.

Chapter 2.

Introducing Automatic Data Processing

Converting to a multi-million dollar automatic data processing
system affecting a large number of employees required considerable advance
preparation.
The term Automatic data processing" (ADP) as used by the Federal
Government and IRS includes processing data by electronic computers and auxil
iary equipment (including card punch machines) and is generally used inter
changeably with the term "electronic data processing" (EDP).
Nearly 3 years
were required for the preinstallation stage of the changeover. Much thought
was given to planning for effective use of the equipment, to selecting the
appropriate computer equipment, and to setting objectives, human as well as
technical.
Initial Steps
Initial planning was undertaken in Washington, D.C., by the newly
reorganized Planning and Research organization. Many staff members of this
organization had extensive IRS experience in different activities, including
establishing the three mechanized centers.
In December 1958, the Planning and Research organization presented
a preliminary ADP plan to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue. Several months
of investigation had convinced them of the feasibility of electronic computers
for processing paperwork related to tax returns.
In March 1959, Treasury
Department officials approved the plan.
It was reviewed by the Bureau of the
Budget later that year, and was presented to the Congress in February 1960 as
part of the budget for fiscal year 1961. Treasury officials described the
program as essential to processing the projected growth in workload.
The IRS Planning and Research organization prepared detailed speci
fications for an ADP system. The plans provided for computers to be installed
in a service center located in each of the IRS regions and for a National
Computer Center to be established in Martinsburg, W. Va. A private firm of
management consultants, hired to evaluate these plans, found the program sound
and the computer applications feasible.
Since personnel and technical problems could not be wholly foreseen,
it was decided to introduce the system first in one region and later in other
regions over a 6-year period. The schedule called for the beginning of the
conversion in 1961 in Atlanta, followed by the introduction in one or more
regions each subsequent year.
(See table 2.) Conversion will begin in the
last regions in 1964. Within each region, the first operation to be converted
to ADP is the processing of business tax returns; next, the processing of
individual tax returns, and then miscellaneous returns and information reports.
The preparatory steps of the conversion in each region begin 1 year before
returns processing begins. The entire conversion is presently scheduled for
completion by July 1968.

This report highlights the conversion to ADP in the Atlanta region,
comprising seven Southern States. The regional office, regional service cen
ter, and a district office are in Atlanta, and a district office is in a
major city in each of the other States.
Nearly 4,000 IRS employees worked in
these 7 district offices in July 1961; about 1,000 worked in units which would
be directly affected by ADP. About half the jobs in the directly affected
units were expected to be eliminated or transferred to the Atlanta center by
stages during the conversion.
Thus, ADP resulted not only in changes in
number and types of jobs but also in their location.

Table 2.

ADP conversion schedule and personnel impact, by region 17
Directly
affected
employees
(as of
July 1961)

Region

10,901

A t l a n t a ......... • • • • • •
Philadelphia ..........
Cincinnati .............
Dallas .................
Omaha 2/ • • • . • • • • • • • • • • •
Boston 2/ ..............
C h i c a g o .... ...........
New York
San Francisco 2/ .... .

1,000
1,420
1,257
918
1,024
752
1,482
1,467
1,581

United S t a t e s .....

Year of
beginning
of
conversion
(January 1)

Beginning of year of
processing returns
Business
(January 1)

Individual
(January 1)

mt w. mm ~

mm m. — mm

____

1961
1962
1963
1963
1964
1964
1964
1964
1964

1962
1963
1964
1964
1965
1965
1965
1965
1965

1963
1965
1965
1965
1966
1966
1966
1966
1966

1/ Schedule as of June 1963. A recent decision merged Omaha with
the Chicago region as of January 1, 1964.
2/ Conversion of existing mechanized data processing centers.
Source:

Internal Revenue Service.

The New Data Processing System
The new equipment was selected by the Planning and Research organi
zation.
In January I960, specifications of the system were sent to 42
manufacturers; after 3 months, 6 manufacturers presented proposals.

Baa*;

.r M

The heart of the Martinsburg Computer Center showing electronic equipment
including control panels and tape processing and storage units.

In July I960, an award was made to one of the six firms to provide
computer systems in regional service centers and a larger system in the
National Computer Center. These machines were to be rented. The first com
puter in the Atlanta Service Center was installed in August 1961; the second
computer in March 1962. A large system was installed in the National Computer
Center in September 1961, 3 months prior to the initial processing of business
returns.
The application of ADP to tax information handling required more
than the replacement of conventional methods with electronic computing equip
ment. The 11total systems approach" to data processing was adopted, and plans
were made for extensive changes in work flow, services to taxpayers, and
location of jobs.
In short, the introduction of ADP required a review of the
total functions and organization of the entire IRS.
Three important technical and procedural features of the system are:
A three-year master file of taxpayer accounts, a taxpayer identification system,
and increased centralization of data processing.
This system has been described
as the "Master File Plan."
A master file of about 80 million business and individual taxpayer
accounts stored on magnetic tape is to be set up at the National Computer

Center.
This is an entirely new activity that electronic data processing now
makes possible.
These accounts contain tax data for several years and are
continuously updated to provide quick access to the current status of each
taxpayer's account. A single reel of magnetic tape less than 1 foot in diame
ter can store a 3-year tax record for thousands of taxpayers.
In view of
great geographical mobility of population, a single master file of records was
considered advantageous.
An essential requirement for creating this master file is a compre
hensive taxpayer identification system. Taxpayers with social security num
bers are required to furnish them to employers and other disbursers of income
and co include these numbers on their tax returns. After congressional
approval of the system, arrangements were made by IRS for the Bureau of Old
Age and Survivors Insurance (BOASI) to assign Social Security numbers to those
individuals needing numbers for tax purposes.
Special employer identification
numbers were assigned to business accounts, including trusts and estates.
Greater centralization of routine data processing is part of the new
system. Much of the routine processing of tax returns, now performed in 62
district offices throughout the country, will be shifted to regional service
centers in major geographical areas. Tax documents will be interchanged
between districts and service centers, and magnetic tapes will be interchanged
between service centers and the National Computer Center as part of the inte
grated system of data handling.
The new system involves changes in the method of processing and
routing tax documents with substantial shifts in the location and nature of
jobs. Taxpayers will continue to file returns and receive assistance in local
district offices, but employees in the district offices will perform only
limited operations before documents are sent to regional service centers.
These preliminary tasks include checking returns for name, address and account
number; depositing and accounting for remittances, and establishing and main
taining initial accounting controls. At the regional service center, employees
will transcribe data to punched cards, convert the data to magnetic tapes, and
ship the tapes to the National Computer Center where they will be entered in
the master file. After the output tapes are returned to the service centers,
high-speed printers will post the information to bills and notices to be sent
to taxpayers, lists of returns for audit, and other control documents.
(See
chart 1.) Regional service centers maintain accountability records for
internal revenue taxes collected within the region.

C hart 1. A D P information flow

The new ADP plan differs radically from the previous system, where
processing work on returns was performed manually at each district office by
workers using typewriters and adding and bookkeeping machines or at three area
processing centers. This system did not involve an integrated master file.
By using electronic computers, many accounting entries that are now mechani
cally or handposted will be eliminated.
Summary postings of totals to ledgers
and journals and some miscellaneous accounting operations will continue to be
performed in the district offices.
Centralization of data processing was con
sidered necessary in order to standardize and integrate operations more closely.
A more current status of tax accounts and more economic use of large capacity
equipment are expected to result.
Organizational Changes
The IRS also made major organizational changes to provide a new
administrative framework for the conversion.
In late 1959, responsibility for
the conversion was assigned to the Director of the national office Collection
Division (the organization whose operations were affected directly by the new
ADP plan). As ADP activities expanded, management decided to separate that

Division*s two major responsibilities; enforcement activities were retained
by the Collection Division, and other activities were transferred to a new
ADP Division which was organized in January 1961. The ADP Division Director
was later given responsibility as an Assistant Commissioner for all aspects
of data processing plans and activities. Similar changes in organization
were also made in the Atlanta region.
An ADP advisory group was formed by the Atlanta Regional Commissioner,
comprising the Assistant Directors from each of seven district offices.
This
group analyzed problems of the conversion and recommended practical solutions.
The Regional Commissioner enlisted the active cooperation of local officials
by having them participate in planning the changeover.
Objectives of the System
Significant advantages for the Government, IRS employees, and tax
payers are envisaged.
The new system offers the possibility of increasing
substantially the IRS capacity to process more quickly, and in greater detail,
larger quantities of routine clerical and accounting paperwork, with a mini
mum increase in the number of clerical employees.
Since the volume and com
plexity of the overall workload, including enforcement as well as data
processing, is expected to grow significantly, a reduction in total IRS
employment is not expected.
The Service anticipates that laborsavings in routine paperwork will
make available manpower resources for improving enforcement activities that
are now curtailed. For example, some revenue producing enforcement operations,
based on comparing information documents and tax returns can now be undertaken.
The consolidated tax account for each taxpayer will help to identify persons
failing to file returns. Computer techniques also make it possible to verify
all returns and to select those for audit which may yield additional income.
This more comprehensive auditing may ultimately lead to requiring more public
information and assistance work by employees.
The IRS sees important benefits for taxpayers.
Improved enforce
ment is expected to insure that each taxpayer pays his fair share. Errors
will be reduced, undelivered refund checks will be credited to taxpayer
accounts, repetitive taxpayer contacts will be eliminated, and more information
and assistance may be available to the public in the district offices. Finally,
business firms may benefit by being able to submit certain tax information on
magnetic tapes.
Manpower in the Changeover
IRS management recognized early that the introduction of automatic
data processing would have enormous impact on IRS employees. Between 11,000
and 12,000 permanent employees throughout the Nation were working in units of
the Collection Division that would be directly affected.
(See Appendix A,
table 1, for the number of employees in directly affected units in each

district office as of July 1961.) With the shift of returns processing work
from 62 district offices to regional service centers, about half of these
jobs were expected to be eliminated by July 1968, Many thousands of addi
tional employees would be indirectly affected by required reassignments.
But
it was anticipated that a greater number of jobs would be needed because of
expanding public service activities and volume of work. The increased employ
ment would be mainly in new regional service centers, while the jobs elimi
nated would be those in the districts.
Early in the conversion, the IRS affirmed its obligation to minimize
adverse effects on the job security of employees. This decision was one
reason for introducing automatic data processing gradually over a period of
years. Along with technical planning, a special group of personnel experts
in the national office was assigned full-time responsibility for planning
manpower policies and for assisting regional administrators to carry out the
plans.
Personnel planning for technological changes was not new in the IRS
or in the Federal Government. The importance of cushioning the impact of
automation had been stressed by the Civil Service Commission, congressional
committees, and the parent Treasury Department. Federal employee organizations
had urged a variety of measures.
General public concern over the employment
effects of automation reinforced the IRS' interest in an orderly changeover.

Chapter 3.

Planning Manpower Changes

Manpower planning steps included making explicit the IRS policy on
job security, exploring manpower problems and developing methods for solving
them, and keeping informed officials and employees who would be affected.
This planning is described in this chapter. The personnel techniques that
were used to administer these policies are discussed in the following chapter.
Manpower Policies
At an early date, the IRS announced to all employees that the
agency's objective was to:
Avoid, if at all possible, reductions in force and involuntary
transfers to other commuting areas and at the same time to place
the maximum number of affected employees in productive jobs, thereby
utilizing invaluable skills and experience.
The IRS also stated that travel and moving expenses would be paid to employees
who accepted new jobs in a regional service center or elsewhere outside their
commuting area.
These policies had been tested during the mid-1950's, when some of
the clerical work in district offices was shifted to three mechanized area
data centers. This work shift, which eliminated from 2,000 to 2,500 district
jobs, was accomplished without involuntary separations.
Exploring Manpower Problems
The exploratory phase of manpower planning began in February I960,
shortly after the IRS invited proposals for the ADP equipment. Personnel staff
members from the national office were assigned full-time responsibility for
estimating the extent of the impact on employees, and problems that might be
anticipated during the conversion period. The group was asked to develop
procedures for eliminating jobs in units where the work was transferred to a
regional service center. They were also charged with developing measures to
minimize hardship on employees without causing serious disruption of continuing
operations.
This phase of planning proceeded at the Atlanta region in several
stages. First, the study group projected the tasks that would remain in the
district office and the staffing patterns that would be required after the
regional service center opened. From these projections, they identified posi
tions to be eliminated or changed. The group spent several weeks in on-thescene investigations of two district offices.
They estimated the number of
potential vacancies from attrition and new job opportunities in the regional
service center. Working with individual employee records, they considered
a variety of placement possibilities and training needs for each affected

worker. On the basis of experience at the two offices, the study group devel
oped a detailed plan for identifying employee adjustment problems to guide
officials in the other district offices.
The next step was to extend planning to all offices in the Atlanta
region. Several months prior to the conversion the study group, together
with regional and district officials, developed staffing projections for each
office and identified jobs likely to be eliminated or changed in grade.
As the manpower implications became clarified, IRS officials real
ized that certain modifications in civil service procedures would be needed
to facilitate the changeover. These officials undertook negotiations in
Washington, D. C., with the Civil Service Commission to achieve more flexibil
ity in applying civil service regulations. Regional Civil Service officials
were kept continuously informed and actively participated in the conversion
program. The resulting changes are described in chapter 4.
Informing Employees
The IRS decided at an early stage to keep all employees informed of
the progress of the changeover and its implications for job security.
Early
communication was considered one means of achieving cooperation in the largescale changes that were to take place. Thus, District Directors notified
their employees as early as 12 to 18 months before any work would be shifted.
During 1961 and 1962, directors issued memoranda to all employees
explaining the conversion progress. Articles were also published in news
letters and employee organization publications. Meetings with affected
employees were held to discuss problems of the change. The information dealt
mostly with career opportunities in ADP, training opportunities, and personnel
policies to ease the impact on affected employees.
In October 1961, after
district staffing charts had been projected, the impact on specific jobs was
explained to employees. It was also explained to employees that program
changes and other unknown factors would undoubtedly result in later revisions
of the staffing projections.
In addition to informing those directly affected, the IRS national
office undertook, in a variety of ways, to keep all field employees informed
concerning the personnel implications and the progress of the change. A
4-page periodic bulletin, ADP News, first issued in November 1961, described
job opportunities in the ADP programs (especially at service centers), re
training of displaced employees, and progress of the installation in each
region.
(See appendix B.) A sound and color film, ADP and You, first shown
in late 1961, portrayed new employment opportunities in the program. A
15-minute film strip, Let's Get Down to Brass Tacks, about the conversions
personnel impact and procedures to aid affected workers, wes shown in all
district offices of the Atlanta region.

Consulting Employee Organizations
Although formal collective bargaining in the Federal service had
not been established, employee organizations were informed and consulted.
In
July 1961, IRS officials discussed the changeover and its implications with
national officers of three employee organizations having IRS membership:
the
National Federation of Federal Employees (Ind.) (NFFE); the American Federa
tion of Government Employees (AFGE); and the National Association of Internal
Revenue Employees (NAIRE), the only active employee group in some of the
districts.
At the regional and local levels, employee groups were also informed
at an annual conference between regional management and employee representa
tives and by periodic district meetings. In the Atlanta district office, for
example, regular quarterly management-employee conferences were held with
NAIRE representatives.
At these meetings, questions about the policies that
the personnel officials had developed were raised and discussed by leading
IRS officials. The conferences provided a means for informing employees and
also a channel of communications from employees.

Chapter 4.

Administering Manpower Policies

Managing the changeover involved major employee adjustments, in
cluding the transfer of affected employees to permanent jobs within the same
office or in offices in other cities. This change had to be accomplished
without serious disruption of essential IRS tax collection activities.
Table 3 shows data, on a fiscal year basis, relative to the change
over in the district offices of the Atlanta region. The reduction in employ
ment in district offices was scheduled to take place gradually between
January 1961 and July 1966. The groups directly affected were engaged in
processing business and individual income taxes. Some district office activ
ities such as public information and assistance and enforcement work were not
directly affected.
Responsibility for administering the policies to protect job secu
rity was placed on key officials of district offices.
To assist these offi
cials, a personnel coordinator was appointed. The coordinator, who had many
years of government personnel experience and graduate work in public adminis
tration, traveled extensively within the Atlanta region consulting with and
advising managers in carrying out the policies.
Her knowledge and experience
contributed much to the solution of some complex personnel problems that arose.

Table 3.

Atlanta region:
Employment in affected units, by district office,
fiscal years 1960-62 and projected, 1966
Projected 2 /

Actual JV

Percent decline

District office

Projected
1962-66

I960

1961

1962

1966

All districts ..

1,045

1,000

811

581

22.4

28.4

Atlanta, Ga.......
Birmingham, Ala. ..
Columbia, S . C . ...
Greensboro, N. C. .
Jackson, Miss.....
Jacksonville, Fla.
Nashville, Tenn. ..

160
125
87
201
73
240
159

148
119
84
197
71
230
151

121
90
75
144
62
194
125

97
64
54
110
39
138
79

24.4
28.0
13.8
28.4
15.1
19.2
21.4

19.8
28.9
28.0
23.6
37.1
28.9
36.8

1/
2/

1960-62

Number of permanent employees in July. Excludes temporary employees.
Number of permanent jobs projected for June 30, 1966 (as of July 1962)

Source:

Internal Revenue Service.

Reassigning Displaced Employees
In reassigning displaced employees, the first step was to identify
the jobs that would be eliminated by ADP, created in enforcement activities
and in the service center, or vacated through reassignment, transfer, or
retirement. Vacancies from all sources were to be used as opportunities for
displaced employees.
The IRS relied heavily on encouraging employees in the affected
office units to seek voluntarily the permanent positions that were opening
up, particularly in the regional service center. The approach was to try
to place in available job openings all individuals who must be reassigned,
without using formal seniority and reduction-in-force procedures that are
usually applicable when jobs are abolished. Major emphasis was placed in
assigning each employee to a suitable productive job, at the same or better
grade, if possible.
Since the transfer of employees was to be a personal, tailormade
procedure of matching employee and job, the personnel officials required a
complete account of each individual's experience, education, qualification,
retirement plans, and ability to relocate. Accordingly, a special placement
data card for each employee in the affected work units was filled out from
records, interviews, and questionnaires.
(See appendix C.) During the
interviews, officials counseled employees about their job security and the
advisability of taking training needed for available jobs.
Office managers estimated the extent to which employment would be
reduced by quits, deaths, and retirements.
It was readily apparent that
these sources would not take care of all employees in jobs that had to be
eliminated. Transfer to jobs at the newly created regional service center
and to district activities not directly affected by automation became the
principal means of placement for displaced workers. For many, this involved
retraining and/or relocation to another city.
IRS made efforts to find jobs for some displaced employees in two
other Federal agencies--the BOASI and the Treasury Department's Bureau of
Accounts. National officials of the two agencies agreed to cooperate in hir
ing IRS employees and directed their field offices in the Atlanta and Phila
delphia regions accordingly. The BOASI and IRS have offices in many of the
same cities.
Measures to Facilitate Placement
To facilitate placement of employees who demonstrated potentialities
for certain positions but who lacked formal qualifications under civil service
standards, the IRS obtained from the Civil Service Commission special author
ity to waive certain formal requirements. This procedure gave the IRS in
creased flexibility to reassign some displaced employees, particularly at the
supervisory levels.

Some employees who did not fully meet normal CSC standards followed
a personal development plan, arranged by supervisors, to improve their quali
fications for their job. (A full account of the retraining is presented in
chapter 7.) For example, a 36-year-old male administrative assistant in an
affected unit was reassigned to a position as training officer. A college
graduate with over 14 years* Federal Service, he was sent to a 2-week manage
ment development school and received on-the-job training.
Affected employees who requested transfer to the service center
were given preference if these employees had a satisfactory work record and
were recommended by their supervisors.
Early Retirement of Displaced Employees
Older employees with many years of service whose jobs were elimin
ated had the alternative of "discontinued service** retirement instead of
transfer and reassignment. To be eligible for these benefits, employees must
have had at least 25 years of service, or must be 50 years old or over and
have 20 years of Federal Service. The annuity was reduced for employees
under age 60. Potential beneficiaries in affected offices were advised of
the eligibility requirements but, in keeping with Federal policy, employees
were not forced to retire if they did not elect to do so.
The usefulness of "discontinued service** benefits in easing the
impact appeared to depend on the employees* economic circumstances.
For
example, a 51-year-old supervisor with 22 years of Federal Service welcomed
the opportunity to retire because her children had finished college and, as
the family’s secondary wage earner, her full-time salary was no longer essen
tial. On the other hand, a 62-year-old bookkeeping-machine operator with
21 years of service who was already eligible for voluntary retirement pre
ferred to continue work because her annuity would be inadequate.
Use of Temporary Employees
It was necessary to continue tax collection activities efficiently
while experienced employees were being reassigned to permanent jobs before
their work was shifted to the computer. Management had to find a way to re
place these employees without jeopardizing the job security rights of other
permanent employees.
One solution was to hire temporary employees for a period longer
than that customarily allowed. The Civil Service Commission granted the IRS
authority to hire temporary employees to do essential jobs for temporary
periods which can be extended up to 3 years. Ordinarily, temporary appoint
ments are limited to 1 year. Former IRS employees and retired workers are
preferred, under arrangements with the Commission, so that training can be
minimized.
Employees given temporary appointments do not acquire seniority
rights for separation purposes, but are entitled to vacation and sick leave.

Temporary employees were also placed in continuing activities
where it was essential to reserve permanent job vacancies for permanent em
ployees who would be displaced. They also filled continuing jobs in un
affected activities when the incumbents were temporarily reassigned to facil
itate the changeover.
Between July 1960, near the beginning of the conversion, and July
1962, a total of 274 temporary appointments were made.
In July 1962, a total
of 177 permanent jobs were held by temporary employees. About 20 percent of
these temporary appointments were to jobs outside the affected units, but
were made to facilitate future placement of affected employees by saving
positions until they could be released.
Use of Temporary Promotions
As supervisors and higher grade employees were transferred, some
remaining permanent employees were assigned to higher grade duties until such
jobs were eliminated.
It was felt that these employees should receive higher
pay but promoting them permanently would create problems in reassigning them
later without jeopardizing the rights of other permanent employees. To avoid
these problems, the IRS made promotions on a temporary basis. They thereby
avoided increasing the number of higher grade permanent employees and, at the
same time, compensated employees for the level of work being performed.
Restriction on Hiring
To increase the use of temporary employees, it was decided by
regional officials to restrict permanent appointments. District officials
were also urged to abolish positions scheduled for eventual elimination as
they became vacant, or to reconstruct them by assigning the simpler tasks to
temporary employees.
A checklist for filling vacancies was issued to insure
that all available alternatives were considered.
(See appendix D.)
In July 1961, offices in the Atlanta region began to restrict per
manent hiring for jobs which could be used directly or indirectly to place
affected employees.
For example, when a job became vacant for which no
affected employees qualified, management encouraged an employee in an un
affected unit to transfer, thus opening a job for which an affected employee
could qualify. The freeze, however, did not apply to jobs requiring scarce
skills for stenographic, professional, and technical work.
Another procedure for reassigning displaced personnel without dis
rupting tax collection activities was temporary reassignment (or detail) of
unaffected employees from permanent jobs to jobs scheduled to be abolished.
Affected employees were also detailed to continuing jobs for training before
transfer. The Civil Service Commission approved an extension of the usual
6-month detail limit to 1 year.

The Commission also approved the procedure of hiring new employees
with qualifications in two fields of work--first in a job to be abolished
and then in an unaffected job. The employee, when hired for the continuing
job, agreed to an immediate detail to the surplus job for the duration of
the job. Regular civil service rules provide that employees cannot be
detailed until 90 days following initial competitive appointment.

Chapter 5.

Impact on Employees

To understand the implications of the changeover for IRS employees,
their personal characteristics were considered. Data on age, sex, education,
seniority, and occupation of 1,074 district office employees in affected units
were compiled from placement data cards which had been filled out during the
early part of the changeover. Trends in occupational requirements were esti
mated from the staffing patterns projected by the planning staff, and the
extent of reassignment and attrition over the first 2 years was determined.
Age and Sex of Affected Employees
Of
More than 30
(See table 4
hired during

the 1,074 employees affected, 893 or 83 percent were women.
percent of the affected employees were 45 years of age or over.
and appendix A, table 2.) Many of the older women had been
World War II to handle expanded tax collection activities.

Table 4.

Atlanta region:

Age of affected employees, by sex

All employees

Men

Women

Age group

All ages .....
Under 25 years ...
25-44 years .....
45-64 years .....
65 years and over.

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

1,074

100.0

181

100.0

893

100.0

41
445
543
45

3.8
41.4
50.6
4.2

6
106
68
1

3.3
58.6
37.6
.6

35
339
475
44

3.9
38.0
53.2
4.9

Number

Percent

Age data as of January 1962.

Note:
totals.

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal

Educational Level
The educational level of the affected group was relatively high,
as shown in table 5. Only 8 percent of the group had not finished high
school, although this proportion was significantly higher among employees
45 and over. More than 25 percent of the group had some college education.

Table 5.

Atlanta region:

Educational level of affected employees,
by age group
All employees

Highest educational
level attained

All levels
Less than high school
graduate ..................
High school graduate ......
Business school graduate ...
College nongraduate .......
College graduate ..........
College postgraduate ......

Note:
totals.

Employees age
45 and over
Num
ber

Per
cent

Employees
under age 45
Per
cent

Num
ber

Per
cent

1,074

100.0

587

100.0

487

100.0

87
443
254
214
68
8

8.1
41.2
23.6
19.9
6.3
.7

74
184
149
138
37
5

12.6
31.3
25.4
23.5
6.3
.9

13
259
105
76
31
3

2.7
53.2
21.6
15.6
6.2
.6

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal

Federal Service and Retirement Eligibility
Employment in the Federal Government constituted the major job
experience of employees in the affected group. Table 6 shows the years of
Federal Government service, by age group. The average (median) years of
service of employees in the group was about 15. About 20 percent had 20
years or more of Federal Government service.
Under the eligibility requirements of the civil service retirement
system, 100 employees (9.3 percent of the total) had enough service and age
to be eligible for retirement annuities.
(See appendix A, table 3.) They
included employees who had at least 30 years’ service at age 60 (or age 55
at reduced annuity), or at least 5 years* service at age 62. Retirement is
mandatory at age 70 with 15 or more years service. Of those eligible, 60
had less than 20 years of service and may wish to work for 5-10 more years
to increase their retirement benefits.
The "discontinued service" retirement provision (described earlier)
allowed employees to receive reduced annuities after 20 years of service at
age 50 or 25 years of service, regardless of age, provided their jobs were
abolished.
A total of 118 employees (in addition to the 100 described above)
were eligible under this provision (appendix A, table 3).

Table 6.

Atlanta region:

Years of Federal Government Service of affected employees
by age group JL/
Years of Federal Government Service

Age group

All groups ......
Under 25 years .....
25-44 years ........
45-64 years .........
65 years and over ...

All
groups
(percent)

10-19

30 and over

20-29

Employ
ees

Per
cent

Employ
ees

Per
cent

Employ
ees

Per
cent

100.0

267

24.9

584

54.4

212

19.7

100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0

41
177
48
1

100.0
39.8
8.8
2.2

235
322
27

7.4
30.6
28.9

Includes military service.

Less than 10

0
52.8
59.3
60.0

Seniority as of January 1962.

33
166
13

Employ
ees

Per
cent

1.0

0
7
4

—

1.3
8.9

Occupational Background
Table 7 presents an occupational distribution of affected employees
by age and sex; occupational groups listed in this table are described in
appendix A, table A. Over half of the employees are included in three occu
pational groups. Of the 1,074 employees, the largest proportion were in
examining and statistical work. Administrative and supervisory occupations
included 19 percent of the employees.

Table 7.

Atlanta region:
Age and sex of affected employees,
by occupational group 1 /

All
employees
Occupational groups
Num
ber

Sex
Under
45

Women

Men

Per
cent
of
total

100.0

54.8

45.2

83.1

16.9

43
156

4.0
14.5

62.8
51.3

37.2
48.7

7.0
67.3

93.0
32.7

5C
91

4.7
8.5

64.0
70.3

36.0
29.7

80.0
96.7

2C.0
3.3

166
244

15.5
22.7

56.6
62.8

43.4
37.2

95.2
89.3

4.8
10.7

6.2

31.3

68.7

100.0

103

9.6

31.1

68.9

88.3

11.7

154

14.3

55.2

44.8

79.9

20.1

All groups ............
Administrative ...........
Supervisory ...............
Public information and
assistance ...............
Correspondence ...........
Posting, checking, and
maintaining records .....
Examining and statistical..
Stenographic and
secretarial .............
Keyboard and other
machine operations ......
Sorting, routing,
classifying, and filing ..

Per
cent

-Age
45
and
over
Per
cent
of
total

—

1 / Positions were classified in one occupational group on the basis of
principal duties.
See appendix A-4 for definitions.
Age data as of January
1962.
Note:
totals.

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal

The majority of administrative jobs and about a third of the super
visory positions were held by men. Stenographic and secretarial positions
were staffed completely by women.
All occupational groups but two were composed primarily of older
workers. Most stenographic, secretarial, keyboard and other machine jobs
were filled by younger employees.
Projected Changes in Employment and Occupational Requirements
According to tentative IRS projections of occupational require
ments, the new system using automatic data processing will result in signifi
cant changes in employment and occupational structure.
(See chart 2.) Al
though it was expected that 479 jobs in affected units of district offices
probably would be eliminated during 1960-66, over 900 new full-time jobs in
the Atlanta Service Center are planned by 1966.
If projections are realized,
this will result in a net employment gain of more than 40 percent in affected
units and the service center combined. More than half the employees in the
service center will process documents and perform other duties similar to
those previously performed in district offices; the remainder will consist
primarily of card punch operators, ADP personnel and administrative staff.

Chart 2. Atlanta region: Projected changes in occupational groups
in affected units and service center, 1960-66
Perce nt C h an g e

— 100

— 50

100

150

200

250

300

This larger work force in Atlanta will be able to perform a much
larger workload than was accomplished manually. For example, all tax
supporting documents, such as W-2 Forms, may be transcribed to magnetic tape
in Atlanta and matched against information in the master file at Martinsburg.
Previously, only a small sample of these documents could be checked. Prepa
ration of such material for ADP requires personnel to check and code docu
ments carefully and precisely and to prepare punchcards.
Centralization of
the keypunch and other data processing functions in the Atlanta Service
Center was considered essential for control and to assure high quality output.
Expanding Occupations. The category of jobs expected to grow
fastest is keyboard and other machine operators (including typists, card
punch operators, and calculating machine and other office equipment opera
tors) . This group will likely grow by nearly 300 percent by 1966 and its
relative importance will be increased sharply, primarily because of the need
for large numbers of card punch operators at the Atlanta Regional Service
Center to transcribe data for computers.
(See chart 2 and appendix A,
tables 4 and 5.) Card punch jobs were not needed before ADP. The number of
machine operators in the district offices will be reduced as work shifts to
the service center.
Three other occupational groups expected to increase relatively
more than total office employment between I960 and 1966 are:
public infor
mation and assistance, correspondence, and examining and statistical.
Groups
that are expected to increase less than total office employment are:
Higher
grade supervisory, stenographic and secretarial, administrative, and sorting,
routing, classifying, and filing.
Many occupations in the Atlanta Regional Service Center will be
similar to those formerly found in the district offices. Tax examiners, for
example, will comprise up to 28 percent of the service center staff. The
ADP jobs at the service center will be new in the Atlanta region, but only
5 percent of the projected service center work force for 1966 will be classi
fied as ADP occupations (jobs directly concerned with planning, programing,
and operating the system).
Declining Occupations. The number of lower grade supervisory jobs
and jobs related to posting, checking, and maintaining records, even when
considering those established at the service center, will be significantly
reduced. The greatest reduction will be in jobs such as posting, since
nearly all of this work will be programed on computers.
About 60 percent of
the 186 jobs involving posting, checking, and maintaining records will be
transferred to the service center from the districts and the remaining jobs
will be abolished.
Appendix A, table 5 shows two occupational groups that
will be virtually eliminated in affected district units, although it is ex
pected that similar jobs will be needed in the service center.
Some work
in these groups may remain in the districts, but it will be performed by
employees whose primary duties are classified in other occupational groups.

C o u rte s y o f I n te rn a l Revenue

S ervic e

transcribing data from tax documents
Courtesy o f Inte rn a l Revenue S ervic e

One expected result of the changeover Is a reduced number of
supervisors,
A decline from 18 to 12 percent in the proportion of super
visors to total employment in affected operations (at a typical district
office) is projected, although the average supervisory grade will increase
slightly because of such factors as wider span of control and relatively
larger number of subordinates. Table 3 indicates that the proportion of
supervisors in grades GS-12 and above will likely increase, in grades
GS 8-11 will remain approximately unchanged, while the proportion in
grades GS-7 and below will decline.

Table 8. Atlanta region:
Projected change in supervisory jobs
for affected operations for a large district office 1 /
Actual
(October 1960)

Projected
(June 1966)

Supervisory level
Numbe r
of jobs

Percent

Number
of jobs

Percent

Total ....................

100.0

Upper (GS-12 and above) ....
Middle (GS-8 to 11) ........
Lower (G3-7 and below) .....

5
16
23

11.4
36.4
52.3

3
6
7

18.8
37.5
43.8

Over 1 million returns received annually.

Note:
equal totals.

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not

Reduced requirements at the working supervisory level are partially
due to simplification of organizational structure. The three-branch organi
zation with three supervisory levels (branch, section, and unit) has been
reorganized and consolidated into two branches and some lower supervisory
levels eliminated.
Grade Level Change. No substantial change is planned in the over
all grade level of affected units in district offices. Table 9 indicates
that, between I960 and 1966, the average grade level will increase from
GS-5.01 to GS-5.33, indicating some upgrading of the job structure. The
proportion of jobs in grades GS-4 and below, however, may decline signifi
cantly as routine work is shifted from the districts and programed on elec
tronic computers.

Table 9. Atlanta region:
Average grade and distribution of jobs by grade,
affected district units and Atlanta Service Center, before and after ADP
Affected district units
Grade
Before ADP
Average grade

After ADP 2/

GS- 5.01

Affected district
units and
service center
after ADP 2/
g s -:5.30

GS-5.33
Distribution of jobs, by grade

Number

Percent

All grades ...

1,060

100.c

GS-14 and over ..
GS-11 to 13 ....
GS-8 to 10 .....
GS-5 to 7 ......
GS-4 and under ..

7
43
73
366
571

.7
4.1
6.9
34.5
53.9

Percent

Number

Percent

581

100.0

1,559

100.0

7
21
35
261
257

1.2
3.6
6.0
44.9
44.2

14
85
79
683
698

.9
5.5
5.1
43.8
44.8

Number

JL/

Grade structure, October 1, 1960.
Projected grade structure for fiscal year 1966, as of August 1962.
3/ The average grade was determined by adding the numerical grade
assigned to each job in the I960 and 1966 staffing patterns, and dividing
these sums by the total number of positions.
(For example, two GS-8 posi
tions and two GS-9 positions would yield an average grade of GS-8.50.)

Note:
totals.

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal

The average grade level projected for affected units of district
offices and the service center combined is grade GS-5.30. Although the
average grade of ADP occupations in the Atlanta Service Center is relatively
high (GS-8.4), these occupations comprise only 5 percent of the total service
center staff. They are offset by the large number of relatively routine jobs
such as card punch operators (about 30 percent of all jobs), the bulk of
which are grade GS-3.

Impact at Mldconverston
Between July I960 and July 1962, 315 employees, or one-fourth of
the 1,254 individuals employed in affected district units at some time during
this period, were reassigned and 128 employees (10 percent) quit, retired,
or died.
(See table 10.) During this same time, however, 209 new permanent
employees were hired. Net employment declined by 22 percent--from 1,045 in
July I960 to 811 in July 1962. Most of the new permanent employees were
hired during the first year, before Atlanta regional officials received
Civil Service Commission authority to fill permanent jobs with temporary
employees. Many new appointments were in occupations such as clerk-stenog
rapher, for which displaced employees did not qualify, and in jobs at lower
grades than the displaced employees.
Some men were appointed to file clerk
jobs that required heavy lifting.
Of the 315 employees who transferred out of the affected units,
202 employees or about 64 percent were reassigned within their same district
(State), generally within the same commuting area. Of these, 177 employees
or 88 percent were reassigned to the Audit Division and the Delinquent
Accounts and Returns Branch which perform enforcement activities.
About
half of this group transferred into technical and semi technical occupations,
such as interviewer, reviewer, and audit technicians. Over 30 percent went
into clerical, stenographic, and typist jobs and the remainder to semiprcfessional or administrative jobs. The remaining group (113 or 36 percent)
transferred to other IRS units or to other Federal agencies.
A majority
were reassigned to the Atlanta Service Center, generally in technical jobs
as tax examiners and accounting technicians.
Of the 315 reassigned employees, 90 relocated in another city.
Two transferred to Washington, D.C. All the other moves were less than
500 miles. About 40 percent of the employees moved to other locations
within their States. The others moved to Atlanta, generally from 200 to
400 miles away. Many of these moves included promotion or were to jobs
with promotional opportunities.
Attrition provided 128 vacancies, only a fraction of those needed.
During the 2-year period, 74 employees or 6 percent of the original group
quit, 4 percent retired, and three employees died.
Information on the rea
sons for quitting was not available.

Table 10. Atlanta region:
Progress of employment changeover
in affected units of district offices, July I960 to July 1962
Permanent employees
Employment and type of action
Number

Total employed at some time,
July 1960-July 1962 ................

Percent

1,254

100.0

Employment, July 1960 ..................
New hires, July 1960-July 1962 ........

1,045
2/ 209

83.3
16.7

Employment separations .................
Transfers ............................
Within IRS district ..............
To Atlanta Service Center ........
Elsewhere in IRS .......... .......
To other Federal agencies ........
Attrition ............................
Quits .............................
Retirement ........................
Deaths ............................
Employment, July 1962 ..................

443
315
202
31
11
21
128
74
51
3
811

35.3
25.1
16.1
6.5
.9
1.7
10.2
5.9
4.1
.2
64.7

JJ
In addition, there were 144 temporary employees in July 1960 and
146 in July 1962.
21 Includes permanent employees hired to maintain essential operations
before authority was granted to use temporary employees. Most appointments
were to clerk-stenographer and other jobs for which affected employees could
not qualify.
Some men were hired for file clerk jobs requiring heavy lifting
Note:
totals.

Because of rounding, sums of individual percentages may not equal

Chapter 6.

Staffing ADP Positions

A major step in introducing ADP is the recruitment and selection of
employees for positions in management, planning, programing, and operating
computers. In the IRS, these jobs are located in three cities. Eventually,
they will be located in additional cities.
Number and Location of ADP Positions
A total of 261 persons were employed in ADP positions as of April
1962. This included only those in the eight occupational categories related
to the management, programing, and operation of the system (table 11). Card
punch operators, tax examiners, and other clerical employees who prepare data
for computers were excluded. Systems analysts and programers comprised more
than half of the total. Those concerned with operating the equipment only
comprised about 8 percent. The distribution of ADP jobs, by grade, is shown
in appendix A, table 6.
Only 32 or 12 percent of these positions were in the Atlanta region
where the impact was first felt. The bulk--192 or 74 percent--were in the
Washington national office. These comprised most of the administrative,
analysis, and programing positions. The National Computer Center at Martinsburg, W. Va., employed only 37 in ADP positions, as of April 1962, mostly in
operating jobs.

Table 11.

ADP employment, by occupation and location, as of April 1962

Occupation

Total ADP employment
Administrators and managers ..
Management analysts .........
Systems analysts ............
Programers .......... ........
Schedulers and controlers ....
Console operators ...........
Peripheral equipment
operators ...................
Tape librarians ..............

Washington
national
office

Martinsburg
Computer
Center

Atlanta
Service
Center

261

192

47
30
69
75
9
18

34
22
64
72
0
0

6
0
3
0
7
13

7
8
2
3
2
5

3
10

0
0

0
8

3
2

Total
employ
ment

Recruitment and Selection
The general policy of the IRS was to select employees from within
the Service for ADP positions, in order to use skills and experience from
different program areas.
Employees were recruited from other Government
agencies and private industry only when qualified applicants were not avail
able from within the Service.
The recruitment of programers wes directed from Washington and
undertaken in IRS offices throughout the country.
(See appendix E for ex
ample of recruitment announcement.)
Employees were generally recruited as
programer trainees (usually GS-7 and 9 levels) and had opportunities to ad
vance to systems analyst and higher level managerial positions. Initially,
a few employees were recruited directly as systems analysts.
The selection procedure involved a series of steps directed by the
national office.
Candidates in programer trainee positions were solicited
from among all IRS employees. Applicants were first required to pass the
Federal Service Entrance Examination and a programer aptitude test, admin
istered in the district offices.
Next, supervisors evaluated candidates on
14 aptitude and skill elements. Among the general abilities sought, good
memory, accuracy, reasoning and arithmetical ability, and capacity to follow
complex instructions were considered highly important.
(See appendixes E
and F .)
Employees who successfully passed this testing and evaluation pro
gram were next interviewed by a panel.
Employees from affected units were
given priority for programer trainee jobs, provided they passed the written
tests. Finally, an overall rating based on test scores and ratings, educa
tion, experience, and interviews was given. Those finally selected by
ADP management were detailed on a trial basis to the national office for
8-1/2 weeks cf programer training. Final selections were made upon com
pletion of the training.
Officials report that relatively few programers so far have left
the IRS (after training) for employment elsewhere. Trainees agree to remain
employed with the IRS for a minimum of 6 months. Promotion opportunities in
this occupation are considered excellent.
Staffing the Kartinsburg Center
The original plan was to fill as many positions as possible with
IRS employees in affected positions. A recruitment drive was conducted
within the IRS to fill both technical and clerical positions.
An adequate
number of applications were received for the clerical area, but only a few
applied or were qualified for the technical computer positions (Console
operator GS-5-11).

At first, all console operator applicants were required to pass the
Federal Service Entrance Examination and a programer aptitude test, and to
receive a supervisors evaluation of satisfactory. It was later decided that
both tests were measuring the same aptitudes and the programer aptitude test
was eliminated. The candidates who qualified were detailed to Martinsburg
for 2 weeks of observation before selections were made.
It was necessary to
use Civil Service registers and outside recruitment sources to supplement the
inservice recruitment for console operators.
Experience of the appropriate level of difficulty was required for
the tape librarians (GS-5-8) and scheduling clerks (G3-5).
No written tests
were required.
Staffing the Atlanta Service Center
Applicants for ADP and related jobs at the Atlanta Center were
solicited from all district offices within the region and elsewhere within
the IRS. Top regional ADP officials visited district offices to interview
qualified employees. Those considered best qualified for higher grade posi
tions were invited to visit the center at government expense for panel
interviews.
In recruiting systems and management analysts, a small number of
experienced IRS employees were transferred to these positions, some at their
same grade and others with one-grade promotions under a Civil Service Com
mission training agreement. Formal qualifications were waived. After train
ing, some were assigned to administrative and managerial positions.
In making
selections for systems analyst trainee jobs, all district employees, grade
GS-11 and above, were considered and some were appointed to grade GS-12 and
13 positions.
Source of ADP Personnel
About 4 out of 5 employees initially selected for ADP positions
were IRS employees.
(See table 12.) Only a small number of jobs, however,
were filled by affected employees from district offices. Apparently, few
directly affected employees had the background or desire to relocate and
retrain for ADP positions.
Employees from outside the Government constituted
only a small portion.
Accepting an ADP position involved relocating for many IRS employees.
A large proportion of the programers were former revenue agents or revenue
officers from field stations who transferred to the national office. Many of
these employees received promotions upon transfer. They received travel ex
penses and moving allowances upon transfer from a different locality.

Table 12.

Source of ADP employees, by occupational group

Sources of employees
Within IRS
Occupational group

Total employment:

All
sources

Number ..
Percent .

Administrators and
managers ..................
Management analysts .......
Systems analysts ..........
Programers .................
Schedulers and controlers ..
Console operators ..........
Peripheral equipment
operators .................
Tape librarians ...........

261
100.0

Affected
field
units

1/
Else
where

Another
Federal
Govern
ment
agency

Outside
Federal
Govern
ment

22
8.4

195
74.7

31
11.9

13
5.0

47
30
69
75
9
18

4
3
4
4
1
2

30
25
53
69
4
8

9
1
9
1
2
7

4
1
3
1
2
1

3
10

0
4

1
5

1
1

1
0

All IRS regions.

Characteristics of APB Employees
To understand the criteria used for selecting ADB personnel, the
characteristics of employees in ADB positions are contrasted with those for
employees in the affected units.
Age and Sex. Most new ADB jobs were filled by young men.
(See
table 13.) Four out of five were under age 45. About a third of the admin
istrators and managers, however, and nearly half of the management analysts
were age 45 and over.
Employees in affected district units were mostly women
aged 45 or over.

Table 13.

Age and sex of ADP employees, by occupational group 1/

All
employees

Percent of all employees in
occupation

Per
cent

45
and
over

Under
45

Women

261

100.0

19.9

80.1

5.0

95.0

47
30
69
75
9
18

18.0
11.5
26.4
28.7
3.4
6.9

34.0
46.7
27.5
1.3

2.1
10.0
4.3
1.3
11.1

—

66.0
53.3
72.5
98.7
100.0
100.0

97.9
90.0
95.7
98.7
88.9
100.0

3
10

1.1
3.8

—
20.0

100.0
80.0

—

Num
ber

All g r o u p s .... .........
Administrators and managers.
Management analysts ........
Systems analysts ..........
Programers ............ .
Schedulers and controlers ..
Console operators .........
Peripheral equipment
operators ...............
Tape l i brarians.... .......

By sex

By age

Occupational group

—

40.0

Men

100.0
60.0

Age data as of January 1962.

Note:

because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal

totals.

Education. Almost all ADP employees had completed high school and
a majority were college graduates. On the other hand, only 7 percent of the
affected district employees had finished college.
(See chart 3.)
Seniority. In general, ADP employees had fewer years of service in
the IRS than employees in affected district units.
(See appendix A, table 7.)
About 67 percent of the /DP employees had less than 10 years of IRS service,
while only 40 percent of the affected group had less than 10 years of service.
The higher percentage of employees with over 20 years of service in ADP jobs,
however, was mostly in the administrator and manager categories.

Chart 3. Atlanta region: Educational level of employees
in affected units and in ADP
Percent
Highest Education

Occupational Background. Most of the employees in ADP jobs were
recruited from technical and supervisory IRS occupations,
(See table 14,)
About 79 percent of the programers and 45 percent of the systems analysts
were formerly revenue agents and revenue officers. A few were former super
visors, some from the affected units. Most ADP equipment operators and sched
ulers were recruited from technical and clerical occupations. Fifty percent
of the console operators had been operators of some type of office machine.

Table 14.

Occupational background of ADT employees, by selected ADP occupations

Selected ADP occupations

All employees
Prior occupation
Number

Percent

Systems
analysts

Programers

Schedulers
and
controlers

Console
operators

Peripheral
equipment
operators

Tape
librarians

All prior occupations ..

1/ 184

100.0

Revenue agents ...........
Revenue officers .........
Supervisors ..............
Analysts ..................
Programers ...............
Personnel specialists ....
Technicians (clerical) ....
Equipment operators ......
Office auditors ..........
Clerks ....................
Student or Armed Forces ...
Other .....................

45
49
21
19
2
7
2
10
12
1
3
13

24.5
26.6
11.4
10.3
1.1
3.8
1.1
5.4
6.5
.5
1.6
7.1

20
10
10
15
0
4
0
0
1
0
2
7

21
38
7
1
1
0
0
0
4
0
1
2

0
0
0
2
1
2
2
1
0
1
0
0

1
0
0
1
0
1
0
9
4
0
0
2

0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0

3
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
2

Excludes administrators, managers, and management analysts.

Chapter 7.

Training and Retraining Employees

The extensive retraining and training for new ADP jobs constituted
an important step in preparing employees for the changeover. This training
was the primary means of obtaining skilled personnel needed to make the ADP
system effective. More important perhaps for the employees was the oppor
tunity that retraining programs provided to improve knowledge and skill for
a greater degree of lasting job security at better pay.
Retraining also ap
peared to be contributing to employee acceptance of the change.
Employee Training Programs
IRS experience in former training programs proved useful in organ
izing the training that was necessary for the conversion.
Changing tax laws
have necessitated major retraining efforts on a continuing basis and develop
ment of a professional training staff. Retraining employees to operate ADP
equipment in the three mechanized area data centers also provided valuable
background. In addition, formal basic training programs for recruits had
already been developed for practically every major occupation. These basic
courses are available for employees reassigned to such positions.
The planning officials foresaw that training and retraining activi
ties would have to be expanded substantially with the introduction of new ADP
equipment.
When training needs of the conversion were ascertained with some
accuracy, a three-man group in the Washington headquarters was assigned to
work full time in planning and coordinating training programs. A special
training staff was also established at the Atlanta center.
Retraining Affected Employees
Retraining employees for new jobs was carried out in two phases.
The first phase, given on a voluntary basis and not specifically related to
a particular position, was designed to provide skills in accounting, income
tax law, typing and shorthand. This training was given by correspondence
and in classes after working hours. Although intended to increase employa
bility in the IRS, the skills acquired could also be useful outside the
Government.
The second phase provided specialized occupational training after
reassignment to a new job. Employees who transferred to service center jobs
were trained for their particular jobs, along with new recruits, during work
ing hours. Additional training may become necessary for employees who prove
to have extreme difficulty in obtaining new positions.
Retraining efforts in the Atlanta region began in mid-1960, when
local officials began encouraging employees in affected activities to enroll
in voluntary correspondence study programs in accounting and income tax law.

C o u rte sy

of I n t e rn a / Revenue S e rvic e

Courtesy

of Interna! Revenue Service

These officials soon realized that classroom instruction, using the corre
spondence texts and tests, would be more effective in preparing employees for
reassignment to other jobs. By late 1961, classes in accounting or income
tax law, or both, were being conducted in all seven district offices.
Between July 1960 and July 1962, one district office reported that
50 affected employees had completed the income tax law course by attending
classes after working hours; in another district office, 21 workers completed
the same course by correspondence. During the same period, one office trained
91 affected employees in various accounting courses.
Selecting Trainees. Classes in most district offices were open to
all employees.
Employees directly affected by the changeover, however, were
encouraged, through personal interviews, to enroll in courses most likely to
result in job placement. Those already enrolled in correspondence courses
were advised to join the classroom sessions. In one large district office,
the response by employees to the classes was so favorable that enrollment had
to be limited to affected employees in grades most difficult to place until
additional courses could be scheduled.
Content of Training. Training classes were based on IRS home study
correspondence materials. This program includes five progressively advanced
courses in accounting and one longer course in income tax law. Only the two
most elementary accounting courses were given by classroom instruction, and
those employees who demonstrated special ability were encouraged to take the
more advanced courses by correspondence.
Contents and length of the courses given in the Atlanta region are
described in table 15. Successful completion of five accounting courses helps
qualify an affected employee for a field (revenue) agent job. Knowledge of
income tax law is required for taxpayer information and assistance work,
another growing activity.
Typing and shorthand training was given in only a few districts.
It was not offered more widely because secretarial grades were generally lower
than grades of affected employees. Although difficulties arose in recruiting
instructors and arranging satisfactory training time, several districts con
ducted this training.
In cities where educational institutions offered free
or nominal cost adult evening training in typing and shorthand, local offi
cials urged some affected employees to attend to increase their employability.
One district arranged for refresher training after-hours at a local high
school, and the IRS paid the enrollment fees. An after-hours course in office
skills was established in one large office and was under consideration in
others.

Table 15.

Contents and length of retraining courses

Length

Name of course

Contents of course

Fundamental accounting .....

Deals primarily with preparation of financial
statements rather than bookkeeping. Includes recent
developments in basic theory and relationship be
tween accounting and income taxation.

14 lessons.

Constructive accounting ....

Presents accounting principles and practices
as they relate to tax cases.

14 lessons.

Corporation accounting ....

Study of accounting phases related to prepration and examination of corporation records. Pre
sents intermediate and advanced principles.

14 lessons.

Special review accounting ..

Provides a review of fundamental, constructive,
and corporation accounting procedures.

14 lessons.

Analytical accounting .....

Deals with analysis of transactions into their
double entry elements; of accounts to determine if
content and values are in accordance with generally
accepted principles; and of statements to ascertain
earning power and financial position.

14 lessons.

Individual income tax law,
1954 code .................

Covers tax liability of individuals under the
1954 Internal Revenue Code and amendments.
Refer
ences are made to pertinent IRS rulings and court
decisions.

20 lessons.

July 1962.

One or more courses had been offered in each district office, Atlanta region, by

Generally a 2-hour classroom session was devoted to each lesson.

Selecting Instructors. Instructors were selected from local IRS
experts in accounting and tax law (typically revenue agents) who volunteered
to teach. Employees with teaching experience or with special IRS instructor
training were preferred. Those selected were given an IRS training course
in "Principles and Methods of Instruction" by the regional training officer;
this course consisted of 40 hours of classroom instruction and practice
teaching.
Initially, all districts compensated their instructors with time
off in return for time spent teaching. Later, payment of instructors' travel
expenses and overtime pay (one and a half times regular salary up to grade
GS-9) was authorized because compensatory time off was not feasible in some
offices due to the heavy workload.
Training Temporary Employees. Temporary employees who were assigned
to the more routine jobs required limited formal training. They generally
received from 2 to 4 hours of formal training and some on-the-job instruction
by working supervisors. Where the unit supervisor had already been permanently
reassigned, temporary employees were trained by an employee who had just been
temporarily promoted to the supervisory job. To reduce the amount of training,
some district offices rehired former employees and retirees on a temporary
basis.
Temporary Reassignments for Training. Temporary reassignments were
used frequently to supplement classroom training and provide affected employees
with on-the-job experience useful in qualifying them for positions scheduled
to remain in district offices. Such assignments were also used to evaluate
the employees' potentialities in a new kind of work.
Training for ADP Jobs
An extensive training program was set up for persons selected for
ADP positions--especially systems analysts, administrators, and programers.
These programs are summarized in table 16.
Systems Analysts. The training program for systems analysts con
sisted of a combination of formal and informal courses amounting to 17 weeks:
10 weeks of full-time classroom training, 4 weeks of observation of processing
operations in a district office and a service center, and 3 weeks' on-the-job
training in the Statistics Division at Washington. The 10 weeks' classroom
training included 3 weeks at the George Washington University in Washington to
study systems orientation and analysis, 1 week in the national office to study
operations analysis and methods improvement, and 6 weeks at the national office
or a data processing center to study ADP programing.

Table 16.

Job title

Training programs for ADP occupations

Description of training

Length of
training

Systems analyst ^1/ ...

System orientation and analysis, at a Washington, D. C. university ............
Operations analysis and methods improvement, at the national office ...........
Programing, at the national office or a service center ........... .............
Observation of processing operations in a district office and a service center .
On-the-job training at the national o f f i c e ................................. .

3
1
6
4
3

Programer ...........

General orientation on ADP concepts at the national office ....................
Basic programing^methods by equipment manufacturer's instructors, at the
national office or a service c e n t e r ......................... .................
On-the-job training in data processing and techniques ...... ..................
On-the-job training in development and maintenance of programs for the ADP
system ......................................................................

1 week.

36 weeks.

Training in punchcard and tape processing techniques (basic programing, arith
metic and logical functions), at equipment manufacturer's school. Consists of
24 lecture hours and practice problems .......................................
On-the-job training ...........................................................

8 days.
4 weeks.

Peripheral equipment
operator 2/ ........

Training includes lectures and class problems in wiring, printing, and control
at equipment manufacturer's school ..................... ......................
On-the-job training........ ...................................................

1 week.
4 weeks.

Tape librarian .......

On-the-job training ...........................................................

1 week.

Cardpunch operator ...

Classroom training in procedures, documents, and programs used to prepare input

Console operator ....

On-the-job training ...................... .......................... ..........

weeks.
week.
weeks.
weeks.
weeks.

8 weeks.
4 weeks.

8 hours.
40 hours.

1/ On-the-job training for Atlanta Service Center trainees was more extensive: Up to 8 weeks on planning
the ADP system in Washington and 36 weeks on specific projects in Atlanta. They also received 4 weeks* training in
basic computer operations and programing at the Atlanta IBM educational center.
2/ Hired as console operators and qualified as peripheral equipment operators before employment.

Key Service Center Employees. Twelve tax collection experts from
district offices were retrained to qualify for key jobs in the Atlanta Service
Center by agreement with the Civil Service Commission in April 1961. These
employees were reassigned as administrators, managers, and management and
systems anslysts at their former grade. The center's director and assistant
director received training on an individual basis.
In addition to regular training given systems analysts, these em
ployees were assigned for extended periods (up to 8 weeks) to the national
office where they helped devise programs and systems which they would later
administer in the Atlanta region.
Since a number of analysts in the national
office have limited field experience in tax collection, the experience of the
Atlanta trainees proved useful in developing the ADP system. This group also
undertook about 4 weeks of classroom training in basic machine operations and
programing given by the equipment manufacturer in Atlanta.
In addition, they
received up to 36 weeks of on-the-job training at the service center. Assign
ments were made to specific projects, based on the interest and aptitude of
individual employees and the needs of the center.
Frogramers. Training for programer positions required about 9 weeks
of formal classroom lectures and practice problems and 40 weeks of on-the-job
training. The formal training covered one week of general orientation in ADP
concepts at the national office by IRS computer experts and administrators and
8 weeks of classes at a location convenient to a data processing center or the
National Computer Center. For example, the initial programer course, given
at Manchester, N. H . , near the old IRS data center for the Northeast, consisted
mostly of formal classes, conducted by instructors from the equipment manufac
turer. One week's study was devoted to basic electric accounting machines;
3 weeks to programing a small computer system; and 5 weeks to programing a
larger system. Trainees were given opportunities to prepare actual machine
instructions and test them on IRS computers. The IRS paid the entire cost,
including travel, salary, and per diem.
Equipment Operators. Training for operators of computers was much
shorter.
Console operators received about 8 days of classroom training by
the equipment manufacturer, followed by 4 weeks of on-the-job training.
Lec
ture subjects included basic programing techniques, arithmetic functions, log
ical functions, and other tape or card tape machine operations, or both.
Problems in programing, planning, and timing were covered. Peripheral equip
ment operator candidates were given 90 hours of free training to qualify them
for employment. Lectures and class problems in wiring techniques and account
ing machine operations were included.
Card Punch Operators. After card punch applicants passed civil
service typing and clerical tests, the equipment manufacturer made available
to inexperienced applicants at least 40 hours of preemployment classroom
training to qualify as card punch operators, grade GS-2. Following appoint
ment, they received up to 8 hours of classroom training and approximately

40 hours on-the-job instruction at the service center. The purpose of this
training was to acquaint the new employees with the procedures, techniques,
documents, and programs used to prepare input data for the computers.

Chapter 8.

Manpower Problems of the Changeover

This chapter describes some manpower problems that arose in the
Atlanta Region during the first half of the conversion period. Information
about these problems wrs obtained from personal interviews with affected
district employees and managers. The problems are illustrative only.
No
survey of employees was made to determine the extent of these problems.
Obstacles to Mobility
Overcoming obstacles to employees transferring to new work within a
district office or relocating to the Atlanta Service Center constituted one
of the major problems of the conversion. Since more new jobs were projected
for the service center than would be eliminated in the district offices, vol
untary transferring could substantially ease the longrun job displacement
problem. Many district office employees could be retrained for tax examiner
and other jobs, in the Atlanta Service Center, which involved work similar to
that formerly performed in the district offices.
Although a number of experienced employees transferred from district
offices, the response by mid-1962 was not as great as had been expected. Per
sonal problems were reported by some employees as preventing or discouraging
them from accepting new jobs. Among the reasons cited were reluctance to
sever close family ties, spouses* employment, and health and age problems.
Financial burdens were important to others. Forced sale of their homes at a
loss and higher living costs at Atlanta were cited by some.
For example, several employees who transferred to the Atlanta
Service Center considered requesting reassignment back to their districts
because they were unable to sell their home without loss. Other employees
stated that their moving expenses could not be fully compensated by the
Government. In some instances, transportation and related charges exceeded
the maximum payable by the Government.
The following examples illustrate some of the problems of employees
who did not transfer:
A 49-year-old supervisory tax examiner (GS-10) did not wish to
transfer to Atlanta, even though her job might be abolished and no
vacancy at her grade level was expected in the district.
Her major
reasons given were fear of loss on sale of home because of a depressed
housing market and responsibility for caring for an aged mother.
She w e s eligible, however, with 28 years of Government service, for
discontinued service retirement.

A 50-year-old file supervisor (GS-6) with only filing ex
perience and no retraining courses was not interested in moving to
Atlanta because her husband was the primary wage earner. She was
also a homeowner. When informed her job would be abolished, she
expressed ••shock11 and a willingness to take a grade reduction rather
than relocate.
A 30-year-old tax examiner (GS-4) declined a service center
job at the same grade because he expected difficulty in selling
his home and his wife was employed locally. His job was scheduled
to be abolished during 1962.
Within the city of Atlanta, some jobs were transferred from the
local office in downtown Atlanta to the new service center in the suburbs.
To plan an orderly conversion, the Chief of Collection (the unit affected)
made a survey in November 1961 to determine how many employees would trans
fer. About 56 percent of his staff (156 employees) were willing to transfer.
Of this group, about 7 percent would transfer only if they were promoted.
The remaining employees (about 44 percent of the total surveyed) were unwill
ing to transfer, some because of the longer commuting distance and inadequate
public transportation.
Some employees felt that the advantages of transferring to the
service center more than offset problems of relocating.
The advantages of
promotion upon transfer, better opportunity for advancement in expanding
activities, and more interesting and challenging work seemed to outweigh
inconveniences.
The following examples illustrate some of the problems of employees
who transferred:
A 48-year-old tax examiner (GS-6) received a promotion upon
transfer to Atlanta. She had previously been detailed to the
service center and decided she would like to work there. Although
unable to sell her home at her previous location immediately, she
rented her house to meet mortgage payments. There was some finan
cial loss in moving. After transfer, she was given about 8 weeks
of full-time classroom training to prepare her for new work.
A 49-year-old supervisory tax examiner whose job was eliminated
(GS-9), was promoted upon her transfer to the service center.
Since
she was eligible for discontinued service retirement (27 years
service), her decision to relocate away from family friends was a
difficult one. She reported personal adjustment problems during the
first 5 to 6 weeks in Atlanta and greater living costs. Since she
was single, problems of relocating were not as great as for an
employee with a family. She received about 6 weeks of classroom
training at the center, including supervisory training.

Maintenance of Adequate Communications
Providing a flow of information concerning progress of the conver
sion, especially between national, regional, and local offices, constituted
a complex problem of administration. When communications were slow, rumors
and uncertainty spread among employees and supervisors.
It was rumored, for
example, that employees in many jobs in the service center would be required
to do shift work. This was an exaggeration that may have temporarily impeded
acceptance of jobs by a few affected employees.
While there is some shift
work, it is done on a voluntary basis.
In retrospect, some officials felt that the policy of frequently
assuring employees that, if at all possible, no one would suffer any hardship
resulted in an undue amount of complacency about the change and a tendency
to postpone decisions. The longrun readjustment of some employees was some
times impaired. For example:
The case of a 47-year-old tax examiner at the service center
with 22 years of Federal service illustrates the reaction of some
employees.
When service center officials visited her district
office to recruit employees, she was uninterested.
Later she ex
plained that she was not fully aware of the severity of the employ
ment cutback or how it might affect her job. Soon thereafter,
management began to stress the potential displacement impact of the
conversion and revealed that her job as supervisory cashier would
probably be abolished.
She began therefore to consider transferring
to the service center. By that time, however, the supervisory jobs
of interest to her were filled and she had to transfer at the same
grade.
She also felt that the initial group of service center
employees were in a more favorable position for future promotions.
By mid-1961, Washington officials were stressing that employees
must take some initiative in retraining and accepting new work when jobs
became available. Managers were cautioned to stay ahead of the conversion
schedule and not to delay reassignments until the later part of the conversion
cycle, thereby compounding problems.
Placement Problems
Placing supervisors in jobs at comparable grade levels in the
districts constituted another problem of the changeover.
While there are a
number of supervisory positions at the service center, few district super
visors accepted transfer, and little attrition is expected in these jobs in
the districts.
The case of a 42-year-old supervisory teller (GS-8) whose experi
ence was limited to cashier and cash accounting work illustrates some prob
lems. Her experience was not needed in the service center and she had not

taken retraining courses in accounting.
In the 1966 staffing pattern for the
district, the two units of the cashier section are to be combined and the
supervisory jobs reduced in grade.
Particular difficulty was encountered in placing employees who
were approaching retirement age and did not wish to transfer for a short
period. For example, a 67-year-old tax examiner (GS-4) with 19 years service
did not wish to transfer to Atlanta since she was considering retirement the
following year.
Retirement is mandatory for her in 1964. The districts
plan to reserve positions for such employees.
Some older employees voluntarily transferred to the service center,
but felt some anxiety about the change. For example, a 49-year-old super
visory tax examiner (G5-9) with 27 years service transferred to similar work
at a higher grade.
She reported that her decision to transfer followed sev
eral weeks of deliberation. During the first few weeks after relocation, she
was still unsure that the decision to transfer was wise.
Employees in affected units who had only minimum skill and were
not sought after by supervisors in other activities presented a difficult
problem. Officials expect that eventually some jobs may be redesigned to
fit the qualifications of such employees,
concerted effort has been made
to bring administrators with potential job vacancies in unaffected activities
into the planning for placement of affected employees, stressing the fact
that this is a Service-wide problem, not the problem of one activity only.
Since new hiring w?s restricted, some employees were considered for jobs for
which they might otherwise have been rejected.
Finally, problems arose in reassigning experienced employees who
were uncertain about their ability to learn new skills or disliked the kind
of work offered. For example, a 41-year-old supervisor (GS-7) declined re
assignment at her grade in an office audit job because it involved extensive
personal dealings with taxpayers.
Training Problems
Retraining presented some difficulties as well as opportunities.
Employees were asked to attend classes after working hours--an obstacle for
women with family responsibilities.
Arrangement for transportation after
classes also presented impediments. For some, immediate personal problems of
attendance outweighed possible future benefits.
Although some districts paid the cost of typing courses at local
business or high schools, arousing interest in after hours typing and steno
graphic training in other offices was difficult.
In one district, for ex
ample, out of 12 employees who expressed some interest in typing and steno
graphic training, none wished to attend classes after work, /mong reasons
given were family responsibilities, and the low-pay jobs and lack of promotion

opportunities in this type of work. Although administrators generally had no
difficulties in recruiting competent instructors from among district employees
for the accounting and income tax law courses, they reported that typing and
stenographic instructors were extremely hard to find.
Some employees reported that they felt compelled to take the train
ing courses because nonparticipation might result in loss of a job, even
though participation was entirely voluntary.
The usefulness of classroom training was also doubted. A few
employees did not believe that the courses had increased their placement
potential or helped in performing their new job duties.
Others, however,
especially those already placed, considered the training very helpful.
While some administrators reported that many employees learned
faster by attending classes than by correspondence, some employees complained
that the classes were too difficult and covered the subjects too rapidly. As
a consequence, one district slowed the pace of the classes from one lesson
completed each week to one every other week.
One drawback to the unrestricted admission policy for training was
that employees who were not considered well suited for the type of program
by their supervisors sometimes entered training. The IRS preferred, however,
to rely on counseling and persuasion, rather than setting up rigid require
ments, to guide individuals into the training considered most likely to result
in reassignment to permanent jobs. Few dropouts have been reported.
Increased Stress and Shift Work
Some instances of considerable stress arising out of the changeover
were reported. One district manager stated that activating the service center
produced periods of intense pressure for supervisors and employees when over
time was required to continue the work at the same pace, despite the loss of
experienced employees.
Although temporary employees filled in to keep critical operations
moving, one manager reported that more supervisory attention was required,
and that a heavier workload was placed on those remaining. Temporary employ
ees were reported in some cases as being only 50 percent effective during the
first 3 months and did not reach peak efficiency until after working about
1 year.
Some officials reported difficulty in meeting workload deadlines, an
unusual amount of employee illness, and employee frustration due to changes
in procedures.
Operation of electronic computers at the Atlanta Service Center in
volved putting a small number of employees on shift work.
Eight employees
were employed on the first shift (7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) and seven on the
second shift (3:30 p.m. to midnight).
A three shift operation may eventually
be needed. Shift arrangements had not yet been permanently worked out, so

there was no rotation between shifts*
Hourly earnings were increased 10 per
cent for hours worked between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. All employees on the
late shift were men. In the Martinsburg center, computers were operated 24
hours daily (three shifts), 7 days a week. This schedule may eventually be
reduced to 6 days. The requirement for shift work for operators caused some
candidates to reject employment offers.
Recruiting Specialized Employees
Management had difficulty in obtaining qualified employees to fill
Atlanta Service Center positions. Only a small proportion of affected employ
ees transferred to Atlanta from district offices. The bulk of these jobs
involved perfecting and routing tax documents and preparing computer input
data. Positions of card punch operator, tax examiner, and accounting tech
nician were expected to account for at least 85 percent of total service
center employment.
Recruiting qualified card punch operators, especially for part-year
employment, was difficult. These positions were announced through civil serv
ice procedures, with an entrance level of GS-2 for trainees and GS-3 for those
with both 6 months* experience and a superior score on the Civil Service Com
mission test. Because of the low entrance grade and routine nature of the
work, there was little interest among affected employees in transferring to
Atlanta for these jobs. There was also competition from other Government
agencies and private firms for qualified card punch operators.
Another problem was recruiting a sufficient number of experienced
tax examiners from the district offices for full-time positions in Atlanta,
and obtaining adequate numbers of tax examiners for part-year employment.
These jobs are estimated to account for about 45 percent of the total service
center staff. Since the duties of these positions involve perfecting, coding,
and controling tax documents, knowledge of accounting and experience in IRS
operations is desirable. Although a number of tax examiners have transferred
from the districts, the response has not been as great as IRS officials ex
pected.
Some of the factors that discouraged employees from relocating are
discussed in the section Obstacles to Mobility,11 in this chapter.

Chapter 9.

Outlook for Manpower Changes

ADP preparations, which began in January 1961, introduced the pre
liminary stage of the changeover in the Atlanta region. The application of
ADP to business tax returns in January 1962 marked the first operating phase.
In January 1963, the second phase of the changeover began with the application
of ADP to processing individual income tax returns.
The entire conversion in
the Atlanta region is scheduled for completion by July 1966. This process
will be repeated, with some variations in timing, in the other regions.
As the completion of the changeover in the Atlanta region approaches,
a number of manpower questions become apparent.
While the conversion thus far
has been described as successful, the possibility that important manpower
problems lie ahead is not ruled out. This chapter briefly outlines some
issues that may arise, some implications for employment trends in the communi
ties where IRS offices are located, and some areas for future research.
Placement of Employees
Placing employees whose jobs are eliminated in the district offices
may become much more complicated in the final phases of the conversion.
Between July 1962 and July 1965, employment in the affected units was pro
jected to decline from 811 to 581.
Whether this or a possibly smaller reduction in the number of per
manent employees can. be accomplished without layoff, relocation, or down
grading of permanent employees will depend first on the existence of enough
vacant positions in enforcement and public information and assistance activi
ties in the commuting area--where most transfers were made during the first
2 years.
It will a l ^ d e p e n d on the willingness of employees to relocate to
areas where jobs are available, especially to Atlanta. Adequacy of budgetary
funds for positions as well as of the attrition rate (both in affected and
unaffected activities), therefore, will have an important bearing on the
magnitude of the placement problem.
If there are not sufficient vacancies,
layoffs may be necessary.
Since many of the most adaptable employees may have already trans
ferred voluntarily, those who remain at the end of the conversion may consti
tute a group requiring much more counseling, guidance, and retraining to make
them qualified for available jobs, either in the IRS or in other Federal
Government agencies. Two measures that were scarcely used during the early
stages (July 1960-July 1962)--waiver of qualifications (used for six employees),
and discontinued service retirement (used by only one employee)--may be more
intensively used to facilitate the changeover.

Incentive for Mobility
Since adjustment for many employees may ultimately require transfer
to new jobs in the Atlanta Service Center, more attention will probably be
directed to stimulating employees to relocate and to take retraining.
The
fear of financial loss in the sale of their homes, for example, tended to
make some employees in the district offices reluctant to transfer to the
Atlanta Service Center where they were needed.
Provision of assistance in
such cases, however, will depend on congressional action.
In the future,
training arrangements such as after-hours classes which discourage some
employees from taking training, may be examined more closely for improvement.
Such changes, however, must be weighed against work requirements, since
untrained temporary employees, loss of skilled employees, procedural changes,
and unforeseen ADP generated work may create severe workload problems.
Future Innovations
The introduction of electronic computers provides opportunities for
using other innovations that may have significant manpower impact.
Thus, the
IRS is studying the possibility of using optical scanning devices and other
source data automation devices that may reduce the need for card punch opera
tors, and of installing electronic data transmission devices that would speed
communications between IRS offices.
If it is decided to transfer other processing functions now in
district offices to the service center, some of the remaining jobs in district
collection and other divisions may be reduced further. On the other hand,
recent delays in transfer of work to the service center may decrease the rate
of reassignments.
The IRS is also studying enforcement and other functions outside
collection work, where ADP equipment may be used.
Under consideration are
applications of ADP for selection of tax returns for audit (presently done by
hand by revenue agents as part-time duties), for data processing for special
agents in fraud investigation, for interchange of tax information between
Federal and State governments, for information retrieval in legal tax work,
and for operations research in tax administration.
Reporting of tax infor
mation on magnetic tape by private firms may also result in fewer additional
jobs for the last phases of the conversion program.
Implications for Community Employment
Although the conversion may not result in greater unemployment, it
will, in the long run, reduce the demand for clerical workers in the local
labor markets where district offices are located, except when, as in the
Atlanta District, the service center and district office are in the same
metropolitan area. Of the seven district areas in the Atlanta region, six
were classified in December 1962 as areas of moderate unemployment, and one,
Birmingham, Ala., was listed as an area of substantial unemployment.

Although the IRS conversion affects only a small proportion of the
labor force in these communities, the elimination of clerical jobs on which
the communities relied underscores the importance of the general problem of
adequately preparing the growing labor force of the 1960's for available jobs
and therefore may require attention by community educational, guidance, and
placement services.
Research Outlook
This study outlines the background and scope of manpower policies
and their application in one region. Since the conversion is still underway,
a complete account remains for future study. Although the experiences so far
probably foreshadow changes that offices in other regions may undergo, the
results may suggest specific policy improvements for future conversions.
Further research, therefore, may be concerned with the implications of such
policy changes for an orderly changeover to ADP.
The present study also suggests the importance of having a better
understanding of the economic, social, and psychological factors that encour
age and impede individuals in relocating and retraining. This subject is of
deep interest to those concerned with the general manpower problems of auto
mation. Since this subject was only touched upon in this study, future
research may be concerned more specifically with this aspect of manpower
adjustment to automation.

59
Appendix A.

Table A-l.

Tables

Total district office employment and employees in affected units,
by district, July 1961

Region and district office

Total
employees
1/

Employees in directly
affected units
Number
2/

Percent
of total

40.898

10,901

26.7

Atlanta r e g i o n .... ...................... ........
Atlanta, Ga. ...................................
Birmingham, Ala. ....... ........................
Columbia, 3. C. ............. ...................
Greensboro, N. C« ........................ ......
Jackson, Miss. ........... ......................
Jacksonville, Fla. ....... ............ .........
Nashville, Tenn..... ...........................

3,951
650
425
336
672
268
1,026
574

1,000
148
119
84
197
71
230
151

25.3
22.8
28.0
25.0
29.3
26.5
22.4
26.3

Boston region ...«.., c...... ......................
Augusta, Maine «••••••••.......... .............
Boston, Mass. ..................................
Burlington, Vfc..................................
Hartford, Conn......... ..................... .
Portsmouth, N. H ....... ............... .........
Providence, R. I......... ............... .......

2,600
204
1,240
100
678
144
234

752
67
365
29
186
42
63

28.9
32.8
29.4
29.0
27.4
29.2
26.9

Chicago region ............... ...................
Chicago, 111........ ••••••••.............. •••••
Detroit, Mich...................................
Milwaukee, Wis..................................
Springfield, 111...................... .........

5,212
2,127
1,747
745
593

1,482
549
480
251
202

28.4
25.8
27.5
33.7
34.1

Cincinnati region ••..............................
Cincinnati, Ohio .........................
Cleveland, O h i o ............ ...................
Ind ianapo 1is, Ind............. .................
Louisville, Ky........... ......................
Parkersburg, W. Va..............................
Richmond, Va................ ...................

4,390
817
1,256
845
526
314
632

1,257
230
316
273
157
84
197

28.6
28.2
25.2
32.3
29.8
26.8
31.2

>allas r e g i o n .................. ....... ..........
Albuquerque, N. Mex. ............. ..............
Austin, Tex. ...................................
Dallas, Tex.....................................
Little Rock, Ark................................
New Orleans, La..... ...........................
Oklahoma City, Okla. ............ ........... .

3,376
187
955
957
280
553
444

918

27.2

51
257
243
85
155
127

27.3
26.9
25.4
30.4
28.0
28.6

All districts ......... .................... .

See footnotes at end of table

60
Table A-l,

Total district office employment and employees in affected units,
by district, July 196l--Continued

Region and district office

Total
employees
1/

Employees in directly
affected units
Number
2/

Percent
of total

New York r e g i o n .... ............. ................
Albany, N. Y .................. .................
Brooklyn, N. Y ..... ............................
Buffalo, N. Y ...................................
Manhattan, N. Y ..... ...........................
Syracuse, N. Y ..................................

6,236
420
1,830
583
2,931
472

1,467
121
464
148
612
122

Omaha r e g i o n ............. .......................

3,702

1,024

27.7

Aberdeen, S . Dak. ••••••••..... ................
Cheyenne, Wyo. ................. ••••••••••••••••
Denver, Colo............... ....................
Des Moines, I o w a ......... .....................
Fargo, N. Dak........... ................... ..
Kansas City, Mo. .......... ....................
Omaha, Nebr............ ........... .............
St. Louis, Mo. .................... .............
St. Paul, Minn. ....... ............. .......... .
Wichita, Kans........ ..........................

142
99
426
522
130
430
298
552
637
466

45
28
105
153
40
115
87
150
178
123

31.7
28.3
24.6
29.3
30.8
26.7
29.2
27.2
27.9
26.4

Philadelphia region ..............................
Baltimore* Md. ........... ......................
Camden, N. J. ..................................
Newark, N. J. ..................................
Pittsburgh, Pa........... ......................
Philadelphia, Pa.......... .....................
Scranton, Pa. ......................... .........
Wilmington, Del................................

5,655
1,172
505
1,253
913
1,323
328
161

1,420
275
127
312
217
351
98
40

25.1
23.5
25.1
24.9
23.8
26.5
29.9
24.8

San Francisco region .............................
Anchorage, Alaska ..............................
Boise, Idaho ........................... ........
Helena, Mont. ....................... ...........
Honolulu, Hawaii ................ ..............
Los Angeles, Calif..... ........................
Phoenix, Ariz. .............. ...................
Portland, Oreg. ................ ................
Reno, Nev.................. ....................
Salt Lake City, Utah ............ ..............
San Francisco, Calif. ..........................
Seattle, Wash............. .....................

5,776

1,581
—
45
49
46
577
65
129
32
52
382
204

27.4
—
28.7
29.3
31.3
27.6
25.8
29.3
24.8
29.4
25.5
30.5

1/
2/

Includes 1,167 temporary employees.
Permanent employees only.

Source:

Internal Revenue Service.

49
157
167
147
2,091
252
440
129
177
1,498
669

23.5
28.8
25.4
25.4
20.9
25.8

Table A-2.

Atlanta region:

Total

Atlanta

Age and sex of affected employees, by district offices JL/
Birmingham

Columbia

Greensboro

Jackson

Jacksonvi1le

Nashville

Age and sex
Num
ber

Per
cent

All employees .....

1,074

100.0

Under 25 years .......
25-34 years ..........
35-44 years ..........
45-54 years ..........
55-64 years ..........
65 years and over ....

41
132
313
306
237
45

3.8
12.3
29.1
28.5

Men ...................

181

ita

a Kr

25-34 years
35-44 years
45-54 years
55-64 years
65 years and

........
........
........
........
over . . .

Num
ber

169

100.0

10.1

4.2

36
39
42
13

13.0
21.3
23.1
24.9
7.7

4
24
43
36
7

16.9

13.6

22.1

2
6

0 .6
4.0
5.9
4.5
1.9

0.1

43
63
48

Per
cent

1 .2
3.6
3.6
3.6

1.8

Per
cent

116

100.0

1.7
3.4
20.7
37.1
31.0

Num
ber

5
1

281

1.2

2.8

33
27

2.5
18.7
29.3
24.2

2.8

14.1
38.8
31.8

14
31

11.8

5
37
58
48
40

14
36
90
82
53

20.2

6.0

2.4

5.1

19.4
43.1
30.6
1.4

12.1

27.1

21.7

18.1

1.2

9.4

9
3

10.6

3.5

1.2

102

UnHf»r 2S ypflrs .....
25-34 years ........
35-44 years ........
45-54 years ........
55-64 years ........
65 years and over ...

35
89
250
258
217
44

3.3
8.3
23.3
24.0

15
16
30
33
39
13

8 .9
9.5

1 .7

17.8
19.5
23.1
7.7

18
38
35
7

.7
15.5
32.8
30.2

87.9

6.0

16
14

86.4

21.2

17.2
5.1

8.2

1.2

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.

2.1

3.9

12.8

19.0

22.2

21.2

4.2
6.9
4.2

4
44
42
34

12.4
37.9
23.5

3
5
3

25
18
7

32.0
29.2
18.9

7.1
3.0
3.0

12.9
29.4

6
12

2.8

0.7

81.9

245

2 .0

2.8

10.6

12
26

76
74
51
6

22.2

.7
3.6
5.0

15.3
36.1
26.4
1.4

100.0

78.3

153

Per
cent

19
58
36
34

2.8

155

100.0

Num
ber

5.0

Per
cent

12.8

8.1

72.9

Age data computed as of January 1962.

1.2

1.7
5.2
4.3
0.9

Num
ber

100.0

146

Note:

Per
cent

83.1

Num
ber

100.0

893

4.1

Per
cent

198

Women .................

20.2

Num
ber

100.0

o
2

Per
cent

3.9
7.8
5.9
1.3

0
87.2
L ft

Q ft
27.0
26.3
18.1
2.1

124

81.0

1ft
46
27
32
6

ft R
30.1
17.6
20.9
3.9

Table A-3.

Atlanta region:

Age group

All groups ............
Under 50 years ...........
50-54 years ..............
55-59 years ..............
60-64 years ..............
62-64 years ............
65 years and over .......
Employees eligible for
retirement 3/ ...........
Employees who may be
eligible for dis
continued service
retirement only 4/ .....

l/
2/

Years of Federal Government Service of affected employees,
by retirement age group 1/

Affected
employees

Years of Federal. Government Service
Under
20 years

30 years
and over

20-24 years

25-29 years

Num
ber

Per
cent

Num
ber

Per
cent

Num
ber

Per
cent

Num
ber

Per
cent

Num
ber

Per
cent

1,074

100.0

852

100.0

154

100.0

642
150
139
98
52
45

59.8
14.0
12.9
9.1
4.8
4.2

567
104
88
64
2/ 31
29

66.5
12.2
10.3
7.5
3.6
3.4

64
29
34
18
13
9

41.6
18.8
22.1
11.7
8.4
5.8

10
15
15
14
7
3

17.5
26.3
26.3
24.6
12.3
5.3

1
2
2
2
1
4

9.1
18.2
18.2
18.2
9.1
36.4

100

9.3

7.0

14.3

17.5

72.7

118

11.0

-----

44.2

82.5

27.3

Includes military service
Seniority as of January 1962.
All employees in this group had over 5 years' service.
_3/ Age 62 with at least 5 years' service or age 60 with 30 years' service. Age 55 with
30 years' service at reduced annuity.
4/ Age 50 with 20 years' service or 25 years of service at any age (reduced annuity under
age 60) if:
(1) employed under Civil Service Retirement Act for at least 1 year within 2 years
preceding separation; and (2) performing duties which are eliminated or combined with the duties
of another position as a result of organizational modification or as a result of continuing re
organization around remaining skills; or if job duties are transferred from a district to a
regional service center.
Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.
Note:

Table A-4.

Description of job duties in clerical classifications J./

Occupational classification

Description of job duties in classification

Administrative .................

Jobs primarily concerned with directing, controling,
and administering a specific department or function.
Responsible for the successful outcome of the undertaking.
Works through subordinate managers or supervisors.
Also
Includes management staff jobs such as administrative
assistants, management analysts, and technicians.

Supervisory ....................

Jobs primarily concerned with supervising a group of
workers engaged chiefly in one general type of clerical
function. Determining work procedures, assigning duties
and checking results, compiling composite reports, main
taining worker harmony, and related duties.
ON

Public information and
assistance ...................

Jobs primarily concerned with making records in con
junction with carrying out transactions involving meeting
and dealing with the public; also receiving, examining,
depositing, and processing cash items.

Correspondence .................

Jobs primarily concerned with composing correspondence
and related documents for the purpose of obtaining or sup
plying information; editing or proofreading prepared copy
for accuracy of syntax and typography.

Posting, checking, and main
taining records ..............

Jobs primarily concerned with posting and checking
various data, maintaining basic accounting records, filling
in special forms, recording transactions, balancing accounts,
evaluating, estimating, tallying, and verifying data.

See footnote at end of table.

Table A-A.

Description of job duties in clerical classifications J./--Continued

Occupational classification

Description of job duties in classification

Examining and statistical .....

Jobs primarily concerned with statistical treatment
of data, such as assembling, collating and analyzing,
examining, perfecting, and making adjustments to tax
returns, which includes computing or making calculations
of taxes and penalties•

Stenographic and secretarial ...

Jobs primarily concerned with making records by tak
ing and transcribing shorthand or speedwriting notes*

Keyboard and other machine
operations ...................

Sorting, routing, classifying,
and filing ....................

Jobs primarily concerned with recording information
by means of keyboard operated machines and operating ma
chines that automatically analyze, make calculations, and
translate or divide information represented by holes
punched in groups of tabulating cards, and print this in
formation on a variety of records and reports. Related
jobs include sorting and verifying punched cards.

Jobs primarily concerned with sorting and routing
communications; inserting or extracting particular data
into or from various types of records for keeping files,
compiling lists, or providing and cataloguing information.

1/
Classifications were adapted from A Functional Classification of Recording of Jobs,
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Employment Security (Washington, November 1950),

Table A-5.

Atlanta region:

Occupational group

Projected changes in occupational requirements for affected district units
and Atlanta Service Center

Before ADP 1/
Jobs in
affected
district
units

Num
ber

Per
cent

581

100.0

978

100.0

4.2
16.4
11.0
5.4
3.9
7.7

28
58
58
0
87
138

5.1
10.0
10.0

2.1
12.4
9.0

15.0
23.8

21
121
88
33
3
0

186
244
53

17.5
23.0
5.0

0
59
49

10.2
8.4

112
309
20

8.2

4.5

148
0

14.0

136
0

23.4

Per
cent

A11 groups ................

1.060

100.0

Administrative ..............
Supervisory .................
Grades GS-6 and over .......
Grades GS-5 and under ......
Public contact ...............
Correspondence ...............
Posting, checking and

45
174
117
57
41
82

mx*

r e r n r r f s ..........

1/
7!

Num
ber

Occupational structure, October 1, I960.
Projected occupational structure for Fiscal Year 1966

Note:

After ADP 2/
Jobs in
service
center

Per
cent

Num
ber

Examining and statistical ....
Stenographic and secretarial ..
Keyboard and other machine
operations ................
Sorting, routing, classifying
and filing ................
Electronic data processing ....

Jobs in
affected
district
units

Jobs in
affected units
and
service center

Change in
affected
district
units

Change in
affected units
and
service center

Per
cent

Num
ber
of
iobs

Per
cent

Num
ber
of
iobs

Per
cent

.. 1^559_. 100.0

-479

-45.2

499

47.1

Num
ber

49
179
146
33
90
138

3.1
11.5
9.4
2.1
5.8
8.9

-17
-116
-59
-57
46
56

-37.8
-66.7
-50.4
-100.0
112.2
68.3

4
5
29
-24
49
56

8.9
2.9
24.8
-42.1
119.5
68.3

11.5
31.6
2.0

112
368
69

7.2
23.6
4.4

-186
-185
-4

-100.0
-75.8
-7.5

-74
124
16

-39.8
50.8
30.2

321

32.8

347

22.3

-61

-70.1

260

298.9

23
48

2.4
4.9

159
48

10.2
3.1

-12

-8.1

11
48

7.4

•j

as of August 1962.

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.

Source: Data derived from IRS staffing patterns.
principal duties.

Positions were classified in one occupational group on the basis of

See table A-3 for descriptions of job duties in occupational groups.

Table A-6.

GS grade
(average)

All
groups
(GS 11.3)
Num
ber

All grades ........
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2

($ 16,000-$18,000) ..
($14,565-$17,925) ..
($12,845-$16,245) ..
($11,150-$14,070) ..
($9,475-$ll,995) ...
($8,045-$10,165) ...
($7,290-$9,495) ___
($6,675-$8,700) ___
($6,090-$7,935) ___
($5,540-$7,205) ___
($5,035-$6,565) ___
($4,565-$6,005) ___
($4,110-$5,370) ___
($3,82C-$4,830) ___
($3,560-$4,505) ___

Note:
Source:

Per
cent

Adminis
trators
and
manage rs
(GS 14.0)

Grade of ADP employees, by occupation

Manage
ment
analysts

Systems
analysts

Programers

(GS 12.2)

(GS 10.8)

Systems
operators

Peripheral Tape
equipment librar
ians
operators

(GS 8.6)

(GS 6.8)

(GS 3.3)

(GS 5.6)

261

100.0

3
12
27
45
65
48
1
27
1
12
1
16
1
1
1

1.1
4.6
10.3
17.2
24.9
18.4
.4
10.3
.4
4.6
.4
6.1
.4
.4
.4

3
12
19
9
2
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

0
0
5
6
13
4
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

0
0
3
30
23
9
0
4
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

0
0
0
C
26
30
0
16

0
0

0
0
0
0

1
1
0
4

0
0
0
0
0
2
0
2
0
6
0
8
0

0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
7
0
0
0

Grade data as of December 1962.

0
0

0
0
0
0

0
1
0
c

Because of rounding, sums of individual percentages may not equal 100.
IRS records.

Schedulers
and
controlers

0
0

0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1

Table A-7.

Years of IRS service, all ADP employees and affected
employees in Atlanta region

All ADP employees
Years of IRS service

Affected employees,
Atlanta region

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Total ........................

261

100.0

1,074

100.0

Less than 1 .....................
1 - 4 .............................
5-9 .............................
10-14 ...........................
15-19 ...........................
20-24 ...........................
25-29 ...........................
30 and over .....................

26
87
62
42
14
10
16
4

10.0
33.3
23.8
16.1
5.4
3.8
6.1
1.5

16
156
260
275
283
53
25
6

1.5
14.5
24.2
25.6
26.3
4.9
2.3
.6

68
Appendix B.

First Issue of ADP News (page I)

t ^ ID IP H I W
U. S. T R E A S U R Y D E P A R T M E N T

Vol. 1, No. 1

I N T E R N A L REVENUE SERVICE

November 1961

NATIONAL COMPUTER CENTER DEDICATED NOV 6

»
New Automatic Data Processing Center at Martinsburg, West Virginia
The N ational C om puter C en ter at M a rtin s
bu rg, W est V irg in ia , was fo r m a lly d ed ica ted
on N ov em b er 6.
T r e a s u r y S e c r e ta r y D ouglas D illon gave the
p r in cip a l
a d d re s s . C o m m is s io n e r M o rtim e r
C aplin , G o v e r n o r W illiam W. B a rro n o f W est
V irg in ia and M ayor C . L e s lie G ollid a y o f
M artin sb u rg a lso spoke.
O ther fe d e r a l, state and city o ffic ia ls w ere
in attendance, including som e o f the m e m b e r s
o f the C o n g re s s io n a l C om m ittees w hich deal
with In ternal Revenue m a tte rs , C o n g re s sio n a l
r e p re s e n ta tiv e s fr o m W est V irg in ia and top
o ffic ia ls o f T r e a s u r y and IRS.
The annual fa ll c o n fe r e n c e o f R eg ion al C om
m is s io n e r s and D is tr ic t D ir e c t o r s in W ashington

Why . . . ADP N ew s ?
Much is happening and happening very fast in IRS’ neces

sary change to data processing by electronic computers.
Even those on the scene find themselves running to keep up.
It’ s new and big! Commissioner Caplin has said it will
"revolutionize the tax field .’ ’
Many of you will have vital roles as we change our IRS
way of doing things. Challenge and opportunity particularly
await those who are ready. For this you will need to be in
formed. ADP News is dedicated to this task.
A s often as news is adequately available, ADP News will
gather the facts to bring them to you. Here you will find
on-the-spot accounts, pictures, views and interviews of and
by people working to bring about this improvement in the job
we do.

coin cid e d with the d ed ica tion , p erm ittin g that
en tire grou p to attend.
A num ber o f th ese o ffic ia ls m ade the eighty
m ile trip fr o m W ashington via a irp la n e. O thers
tr a v e le d via bu s.
The N ational C om pu ter C en ter o c cu p ie s a fiv e
a c r e tr a c t about fou r m ile s east o f M artin s
burg (15,179 p opu la tion ). The land w as fo r m e r ly
pa rt o f the grounds o f the Newton D. B aker
V e t e r a n s ’ A d m in is tr a tio n H o s p it a l.

Building D esign
B uilding e x te r io r is fin ish ed in r o s e b r ic k ,
su pplied by a M artin sb u rg m a n u fa ctu rer.
The building is one o f the fir s t to be s p e c if
ic a lly d esig n ed and c o n s tru cte d fo r the e x clu siv e
occu p a n cy o f a fe d e r a l e le c tr o n ic data p r o c e s s
ing o p era tion .
The stru ctu re is not la r g e by p r e s e n t building
stan dards. But out o f a total u sa b le a rea o f
39,000 sq u a re fe e t, 7,500 sq u a re fe e t constitute
com pu ter a r e a . By c o m p a ris o n the Atlanta S er
v ic e C en ter, under co n s tru ctio n and sch eduled
fo r co m p le tio n by June, 1962, w ill have 200,000
sq u a re fe e t o f u sab le a re a with on ly 5,000 square
fe e t o f com p u ter a rea , a p p rox im a tely .
P r e s e n t ca p a city o f the C en ter is ex p ected
to fu lfill S e r v ic e n eeds at le a s t through 1969.
The building is design ed to p e rm it h o riz o n ta l
ex pan sion o f any k ey o p era tion a l a rea without
in te r fe r e n c e with any o th er.

69
Appendix C#

Qualifications Inventory Card

1. NA M E

2. P O S I T I O N AN D G R A D E

4. HQ AN D P O D

10. A V A I L A B I L I T Y

5. DOB

6. S EX

3. SCO

7. R E T I R E M E N T P O S S I B L E ?

□
NO □
Y E S (Date)
(willingness or unwillingness to relocate; conditions and exceptions, etc.)

11. E D U C A T I O N

TY PIN G
SK IL L

□

yes

SHORTHAND
SK IL L

□

YES

□

12. IRS AN D C S C T E S T SC O RE S AN D D A T E S

13. IRS T R A I N I N G (courses and dates, including correspondence courses)

IRS EXPERIENCE

14.

(Show redeployment training on reverse)

POSITION T I T L E

S E R IE S

P OSITIO N T I T L E

Y E A R S AN D M O NT H S

GRADE

O R G A N IZ A T IO N A L UN IT

YEA RS AND MONTHS

(List
chrono
logically)
15.

16. O U A L I F I E D IN O T H E R S E R IE S (present or higher

grade)

OUTSIDE
EXP ERIENCE
17. T E N T A T I V E S O L U T I O N S

(positions to which employee could be reassigned, with alternatives)

18. R E Q U I R E D F O R A B O V E S O L U T I O N

( training,

waivers, etc.)

19. NA M E O F I M M E D I A T E S U P E R V I S O R

20. EST . D A T E POS. A D V E R S E L Y A F F E C T E D
EA R LIEST

U. S. T R E A S U R Y D E P A R T M E N T - I N T E R N A L R E ' ' P N I I E S E R V I C E

21. D A T E P R E P A R E D

LATEST

Q U A L IF IC A T IO N S IN V E N T O R Y C A R D

FO RM

3190

(3-62)

22. PLACEMENT ATTEMPTS
P O S IT IO N S

FOR

IN D I S T R I C T

(Show title, series,
grade, and organization)

W H IC H

C O N S ID E R E D
OUTSIDE DISTR IC T

(Show title, grade, agency
and location)

WAS EMPLO YE E
O FFE RE D
P O SITIO N ?

(Check which)
Y ES

DID EM
PLOYEE
ACCEPT
PO SITIO N ?

(Check which)
Y ES

REMARKS

(reason for refection or withdrawal o f
offer, etc.)

23. REDEPLOYMENT TRAINING (typ e and date)

24. R E M A R K S

(other pertinent information such as physical impairment, awards or commendations, etc.)

2$.

FINDING

c
w*.
r vmL LiUaW

UP
ACTION

25. D A T E A N D N A T U R E O F F I N A L
P L A C E M E N T A C T IO N

D A T E OF REV IE W

R E V IE W E R

B.
C.
D.

FO R M

3190 ( 3- 62)

70
Appendix D.

Checklist for Filling Vacancies Occurring Before and During ADP
Conversion

CHECK LIST FOR FILLING VACANCIES OCCURRING
BEFORE AND DURING ADP CONVERSION

D I S T R I C T M A K IN G E V A L U A T I O N

POS IT IO N T I T L E

SE R IE S

GRADE

O RG ANIZATIO NAL LO CATIO N

S F-5 2 R E Q U E S T NU M B E R

DATE

T Y P E O F A C T IO N R E Q U E S T E D

CONCURRENCES

IN IT IA L S OR S IG N A T U R E

DATE

S U P E R V IS O R I N I T I A T I N G A C T IO N

C H I E F O F D IV IS IO N I N I T I A T I N G A C T IO N

PERSONNEL O F F IC IA L

REDEPLOYMENT O FFIC IA L

O T H E R (If more than one division concerned)

P A R T 1 - E V A L U A T IO N O F V A C A N T P O S IT IO N S

YE S

A L L V A C A N C IE S

la . D oes the most recent classification maintenance survey flag the position as requiring some action?
b. If " Y e s , " has the action been tak'en?
2. If a continuing position, can it be restructured as a utility or trainee position and used for retraining or qualifying
em ployees in activities directly affected by conversion, without unduly affecting work operations?
V A C A N C I E S IN AN A C T I V I T Y

D IR E C T L Y A F F E C T E D BY C O N V E R S IO N

3. Can the position or function be consolidated with another, thereby eliminating the vacancy?
4. Will the position continue without change after ADP conversion?
5. Will part or all of the duties of the position be eliminated
by ADP conversion? If " Y e s f" When?
6. Will part of the duties continue after conversi on, but probably
be downgraded as a result of ADP impact? If " Y e s . " When?
7. If upgrading is warranted, can the position be restructured and c la ssifie d at a lower grade?
8. If the position will be
affected by AD P, can
it be restructured:
9. If a supervisory posi

a. So as to be filled by a temporary em ployee?
b. So as to be filled by detail of an employee from another activity?
c. To eliminate sp e cia lized s k ills so a s to be filled at a lower grade?
a. Performed as part of an existing higher grade supervisory position?
b. Filled on an acting or working supervisory b a s is ?

tion, can it be:

c. Performed by a senior or staff assistan t?
P A R T II - F I L L I N G V A C A N T P O S IT IO N S (Complete if a vacant position is to be filled)
V A C A N C I E S IN A N A C T I V I T Y

D IR E C T L Y

AFFECTED

BY C O N V E R S IO N

a. Detail of an employee to a position at the same or lower qrade?
b. Temporary appointment of a new or former IRS em ployee?
1. Can the vacancy be
filled by:

c. Appointment, by selective certification, of someone who has dual qualifications for a con
tinuing position into which he later can be moved, and for immediate detail to the vacancy?
d. Reassignment of an employee from another position at the same grade?
e. Limited temporary promotion, as a last resort?

V A C A N C IE S O U T S ID E A C T IV IT IE S D IR E C T L Y A F F E C T E D

B Y C O N V E R S IO N

2. Can the position be filled by an employee in an activity directly affected by conversion?
a. Promotion?
b. Detail at the same grade lev el?
3. If " Y e s , " can this be
accomplished by:

c. Reassignm ent (at the same grade) and, if necessary, authorized waiver of qualification
requirements?
d. Limited temporary promotion, as a last resort?

4. If the position cannot be filled directly by an employee in an activity directly affected by conversion, can a series
of placem ents be made that will ultimately make po ssib le the placement of such an em ployee? If " Y e s , " outline on
reverse side the series of placem ents used.
If the position is not filled from a directly affected activity, outline considerations given and reasons for decision.
U. S. T R E A S U R Y D E P A R T M E N T - I N T E R N A L R E V E N U E S E R V I C E

FORM

3341 ( 1- 6 2 )

Appendix E.

Recruitment Announcement, The Digital Computer Programmer in
the Internal Revenue Service

U. S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT

INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE

To All National Office Employees
THE DIGITAL COMPUTER PROGRAMMER
IN THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE
What Is He?
The Digital Computer Programmer is a keyme'mberof the Automatic Data Processing
team. Along with the administrator and the systems analyst, the programmer develops
the essential instructions which ADP equipment needs to function.

What Does He Do?
Working from general guides and concepts, the programmer translates a data process
ing problem into a program for the machine to follow. After he gains a complete under
standing of what needs to be accomplished, the programmer prepares a detailed flow chart
to indicate the essential operations, logical as well as arithmetical, to be performed by the
computer. He then works out detailed machine instructions, based on the design of the flow
chart and the language of the machine. These must be checked and tested carefully by the
programmer before the production run starts. The programmer must also prepare the
instructions which the operator of the machine needs to run the program on the machine.

What Abilities Does He Need?
Among the personal skills and abilities needed by a programmer, these stand out as
highly important:
-------

Ability to follow complex instructions
Reasoning ability
Good memory
Accuracy
Arithmetical ability
Ability to absorb training

A programmer needs to apply these skills in sustained concentration on problems of
infinite detail. A quality product is needed and time schedules must be met. A programmer
needs to be constantly aware that the computer doesn't "th in k " - - i t needs step-by-step
instructions for every job it is to handle.

What Are The Career Possibilities?
Programmer jobs exist at grades GS-5 through G S-12. For men and women of ability,
advancement possibilities appear unusually bright - - into senior programmer positions,
and as the ADP program expands, into supervisory and other types of technical jobs as
well.

How To Apply
Submit a memo to your Personnel Office, Room 1108, and arrangements will be made
for the administration of the Federal Service Entrance Examination. If you pass or have
previously passed this examination, you will take the Programmer Aptitude Test. Those
who previously took this examination, but failed to score A or B are eligible to re-take this
examination six months later. In all cases, those who previously applied but were not
selected, must resubmit a memo.

72
Appendix F.

Automatic Data Processing Supervisory Evaluation
Ikte

AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING SUPERVISORY EVALUATION
Name o f applioant

Post of duty

Cheok appropriate blook below
kloumts

Inprove*
ment

neoessary

Average

Well
above
average

Ex
tremely
high

1* A bility to absorb training
2* A bility to use complex oral and written instructions
3* A bility to see relationships o f things to eaoh other
4. Adaptability
5® In itia tive
6* A bility to plan projects or programs
7# A bility to analyte systems or procedures
8* A bility to work with a team
9* A bility in written expression, including report writing
10, Tact in dealing with people
11, A bility to make decisions
12, A bility to work independently
13* A bility to handle varied programs
14* A bility in oral expression
15* For those elements for which a rating cannot be assigned, please provide your opinion as to the applicant's
potential a b ility in the element*

16* Please provide below an overall reoonraendation and any other information which would be useful to the selectin g
o ffio ia l in considering the candidate fo r this position .

Appendix G.

Selected Bibliography on Government Automation

U.S. Government Documents
Astin, A. V. “Statement to the Subcommittee on Automation and Energy
Resources,“ New Views on Automation. U.S. Congress, Joint Economic
Committee, 86th Cong., 2d sess.
(Washington, 1960), pp. 157-165.
Latham, Dana.
“Internal Revenue Service--salaries and expenses.
Testimony before the Subcommittee on Treasury-Post Office Departments
Appropriations.“ Treasury-Post Office Departments Appropriations for
1961; Hearings. U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Appropria
tions, 86th Cong., 2d sess., February 2, 1960 (Washington, 1960),
pp. 457-516.
U.S. Bureau of the Budget.
Inventory of Automatic Data Processing (ADP)
Equipment in the Federal Government» Including Costs» Categories of
Use, and Personnel Utilization (Washington, August 1962).
126 pp.
U.S. Congress, House of Representatives, Committee on Post Office and
Civil Service. Office Automation and Employee Job Security; Hearings.
Subcommittee on Census and Government Statistics, 86th Cong., 2d sess.,
March 2 and 4, 1960 ('Washington, I960).
84 pp.
U.S. Congress, House of Representatives, Committee on Post Office and
Civil Service.
Report on the Use of Electronic Data Processing Equip
ment in the Federal Government. Prepared by Subcommittee on Census
and Government Statistics, 86th Cong., 2d sess.
(Washington, 1960).
113 pp.
U.S. Congress, House of Representatives, Committee on Pokt Office and
Civil Service. Use of Electronic Data Processing Equipment; Hearings,
Subcommittee on Census and Government Statistics, 86th Cong., 1st sess.,
June 5, 1959 (Washington, 1959).
142 pp.
U.S. Congress, House of Representatives, Committee on Post Office and
Civil Service. Use of Electronic Data Processing Equipment; Hearings.
Subcommittee on Census and Government Statistics, 87th Cong., 2d sess.,
October 2, 3 and 5, 1962 (Washington, 1962).
328 pp.

II.

Reports and Articles
Bell, James R. and Steedman, Lynwood B. Personnel Problems in Converting
to Automation. The Inter-University Case Program 44 (University, Ala.,
University of Alabama Press, I960).
14 pp.

Appendix G.

Selected Bibliography on Government Automation--Continued

Bergamini, David.
"Government by Computers," The Reporter (August 17,
1961), pp. 21-28.
"Electronic Data Processing in Public Administration," Public Adminis
tration Review. American Society for Public Administration, Chicago
(September 1962), pp. 129-152.
Gerold, Charles.
"ADP in Federal Personnel Management: The Sleeping
Giant," Public Administration Review. American Society for Public
Administration, Chicago (Spring 1962), pp. 71-74.
Phillips, Charles A. "The Government--a $1.5-billion factor," Datamation.
F. D. Thompson Publications, Inc., New York (January 1962), pp. 23-24.
Riche, Richard W. and Alii, William E. "Office Automation in the Federal
Government," Monthly Labor Review (September 1960), pp. 933-938.
Ronayne, Maurice F. "The Personnel Side of Automatic Data Processing,"
Public Personnel Review (October 1960), pp. 243-248.
Siegman, Jack and Karsh, Bernard.
"Some Organizational Correlates of
White Collar Automation," University of Illinois Bulletin. Reprint
Series No. 110 (February 1962), pp. 108-116.
Smith, William H. "Automatic Data Processing in the Internal Revenue
Service," Computers and Automation. Berkeley Enterprises, Inc.,
Newtonville, Mass. (October 1962), pp. 10-13.

* U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1963 0 - 6 9 4 - 4 6 5

Full text of Impact of Office Automation in the Internal Revenue Service: A Study of the Manpower Implications During the First Stages of the Changeover : Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, No. 1364

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