There shall be, in the Department of Labor and Industry, as many Workmen's Compensation Referees, as, in the judgment of the Secretary of Labor and Industry, shall be necessary properly to administer the workmen's compensation laws of the Commonwealth. Such referees shall be appointed by and subject to the direction and control of the Secretary of Labor and Industry. The Secretary of Labor and Industry shall assign them to the various workmen's compensation districts, and shall prescribe from time to time the duties to be performed by them.

All positions as Workmen's Compensation Referees now existing or hereafter created shall be in the classified service in conformity with the act of August 5, 1941 (P.L. 752, No. 286), known as the “Civil Service Act”¹: Provided, That persons occupying such positions on the day before the effective date of this amendment shall serve the maximum probationary period authorized by section 603 of the “Civil Service Act,”² beginning on effective date of this amendatory act: And provided further, That any handicapped person subsequently appointed to the position of a Workmen's Compensation Referee prior to October 15, 1972 shall serve the maximum probationary period authorized by section 603 of the “Civil Service Act” beginning on the date of his appointment.