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Letter to the Director, Bureau of the Budget, on the Utilization of Manpower in the Federal Government.

June 09, 1951

[Released June 9, 1951. Dated June 8, 1951]

My dear Mr. Lawton:

The present emergency has caused great demands on the manpower resources of our country, with shortages of manpower in certain special areas already being felt. It is extremely important that all possible steps be taken to eliminate these shortages and to assure the availability of manpower for all essential mobilization activities. Adequate solution to our manpower problems will require the exercise of energy, imagination and ingenuity on the part of every employer and employee.

The Federal Government, as the largest single employer in the country, should set the example in accomplishing this objective. Therefore, I expect the head of each executive department and agency to take all necessary actions to conserve manpower and generally to bring about maximum effectiveness and economy in the utilization of personnel. This manpower conservation program should be given top priority throughout the executive branch.

In order to assist the departments and agencies in achieving the results I desire, I want you, together with the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission, to issue instructions on steps which can be taken to conserve manpower, and to advise and consult with the departments and agencies on specific problems which they may have in carrying out this program. I am also asking that the Bureau of the Budget and the Civil Service Commission request reports from all departments and agencies and conduct regular inspections and surveys so that reports can be made to me on progress in conserving manpower, including recommendations for further actions which may be necessary.

This program to achieve conservation and utilization of manpower in the Federal Government is endorsed by the Manpower Policy Committee of the Office of Defense Mobilization, and is in line with its over-all program for conserving manpower throughout the country.

I am sending a similar letter to the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission.

Sincerely yours,

HARRY S. TRUMAN

[Honorable Frederick J. Lawton, Director of the Bureau of the Budget, Washington 25, D.C.]

Harry S Truman, Letter to the Director, Bureau of the Budget, on the Utilization of Manpower in the Federal Government. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/231145

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