AN INNOVATION.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1733, 25 April 1913, Page 5

AN INNOVATION.

MECHANICAL APPLIANCES.

IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE,

NEW SYSTEM INTRODUCED. IMPORTANT DEVELOPMENT. An important change is being made is tho clerical ivork of the staffs of the. various Departments under their control hy the Publio Service Commissioners, by tlio introduction'of mechanical office opplianccs—billing machines and listing and adding machines chiefly. ; Tlio use of these machines will be an important development and tho object of it is to bring the methods of work iu ~o f ,'ho Departments into accord with tnol later ideas of modern office administration. By the change it is hoped to bring about improvement in methods to gain greater efficiency and to reduce [lie montal strain ou the officers engGcpd in ordinary routine wofk. Instructor Appointed, . ?i " s '®P,. a PP'ieations wcro inr il l Aw. , for the, position of instructor mid demonstrator im the uso of these machines rec °snised that it was of the utmost importance for the efficient working of tho machines that tho officers engaged in the manipulation of them should be subjected first to a nroper course of instruction, and should be required to pass an efficiency test before being allowed to undertake work in tho Departments. From among tho applicanfs for, the position tho' commissioner* appointed Miss A. C. Hedley, of the Cliristcliurch Accountants' Branch of tho : I ostmaster-General's Department of the -: Commonwealth of Australia. Miss Hed-, . foy took up her ivork last week; ' l'rior to coming to New Zealand Miss ■Hedlev specialised in tho uso of tlieso machines, ami she had completed tlio organisation oj special classes, Riven courses of instruc- • Hon, and conducted examinations in the 1 irit lllec i il . n j cal °® co appliances at Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, and ltobart. Applications liavo also been invited from female officers in tho Publio 1 bervico alio from -telephono exchange ca-' dettes desirous of being taught liow to n I'I )1, " n ?, 0 . s > '*>"<• "Ii to date 100 . applications for tuition have been received Classes are now in full working order in Wellington, and it is proposed to cstab-' 1 classes in tlio o%r centres as soon as .possible Special inducements aro being held out to femalo officers who qualify on the use of tho machines. Those whoso timo is fully occupied in operating machines will bo specially classified. Thisv classification wilf entitle them to ono our <9 seniority, and thov will l special increment in salary of .£lO per year, but there will be 110 promotions until nn efficiently test examination has ' .been passed. ' ' Tho services of tho instructor lnivo : also been placed at tlio disposal of Departmental heads, in order that they mnv ' ,learn' how mechanical appliances may be used for tho work ill their Departments, and in order that they may bo guided in,--tie purchase of suitable machines. Further, <m invitation has been extended to all members of tlio wrvico to inimiew the instructor on'the subject, of machines and processes..

What Officers Say In Australia,

, In reviewing this matter it is mteresf" ing to notq i:he comments of officials in tho Public Sorvico in Australia on tho uso of machines. Following is on, extract from the report of tho Chief Accountant ot the PostmasterrGpneral of tho Commoiu wealth:—

"llio application of modern methods and mechanical appliances has been consistently extended throughout the vear to the routine work iin Ihe Accounts and Mores branches. During- tho year a competitivo examination in tho manipulation: of mechanical appliances (that is billing, machines, ndding and listing machines etc.) has. been held. Tho examinations,' which were uniquo in character, wero carried out with success and n number of approved candidates were appoihted to positions.as machinists. The character of tho work performed by tho female operators is excellent, ..

"During the year considerable economies have been effected, the work is being kept up-to-date almost without overtime, and tho expansion, of business which hn<» taken place during the year is being deidt with without extra staff. Next year it is anticipated that overtime, which has bsen considerable for years past, will bo discontinued entirely.

' Tlio now accounting system innsc.tkcra. i with tho aid of calculating machines anti-type-writers with adding devices was highly commended also by the Deputy I'ost masters-General of New South Wale?, Queensland, and South Australia, ill their; reports. Tlicy all testified that the work' of their offices wris done with greater ei«. peditiou and economy than formerly, and that nit the congestion which previously, existed in some accounts had been removed. Economy Possible. II has been ascertained' that tlio work of many of the Department* principally the revenue-earning and statistical branches, can bo easily adapted to compilation by'machine processes.' Tlio Commissioners linvo gone carefully into the matter, arid arc satisfied that by the adoption of Iho mulliplo system and: the use of machines, it will bo possible to reduce the amount of work ki be done in. iho Departments. As one instance of the benefits to bo derived it may be mentioned that in one Department wlier« iino liiachino was iiilroducetl at; Iho in-, slnuco of 'lift Commissioners, a saving at tlio rate of JiiOO per'annum litis been effected. ' . Tlio Cpnimissiouers have,' under iho powers conferred upon them by tho Act, accepted tlio responsibility of feviewing nil books of accounts and forms which may bo required by Departments, and it is expected that this step will have the effect of bringing about uniformity in Departmental methods, and that in some cases it will bo quito possiblo for the same books and forms to bo used ill moro than onp Department, whereas ut present special sets of books ara used in every: ecpnratn Department. « No Reduction of Staffs, It is not expected that ihc staffs will bo reduced on account of tho introduction of tlio labour-saving devices. If there is a surplus set free in one place, it will lio absorbed elsewhere. All Unit will happen will be by wav, of readjustment? Operating tho machines is essentially women's work, and it is intended to employ women only at it. As the auto-, niatic telephone system will bo in use before long, tho Commissioners are endeav-. owing, by teaching tho girls to use-the machines, fo enable tho telephone girls' to take other positions in tho serv'ico when' | hero is no longer work for them to do in tho exchanges. Tt is not intended that boys shall bo set tn work tho machines.

Tlio aim of tho Commissioners will be to give every boy who joins tlio service an opjiortunity of learning something of th» general working of ltis department, rather (nan lo allow him io devote himself to any special work liko operating a calculating machine.

Jliss Iledley is installed in rooms in tho : old Post OtHce building—an oflico and a.-machine-room. Sho explained yesterday to a Dominion* reporter t.lio use of tlio ; machines, and showed samples of work J done by the machines in Australia. It ' is impossible to Rive even the vaguest idea of the wonders the appliances can accomplish in the hands of n competent. expert, such as Hiss Hcdley undoubtedly < is, but witli a new system of accounts ; and records, it is expected Hint thfy will i effect: great economies. j -- |