
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, February 18, 1991                   TAG: 9102180341
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A/8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MARY J. REED
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

WILDER `FURLOUGH' MEANS MORE WORK FOR FEWER STATE EMPLOYEES

THE EDITORIAL Feb. 6 correctly states that salaries for state employees are less than those for comparable jobs in the private sector. It is also correct that state employees are demoralized already by the loss of a promised salary increase and no hope for any raise in the foreseeable future, despite increasing living costs.

The salary of state employees is paid for wages earned - this is not some stipend or "extra income." Our salaries go for mortgages, car payments, child care, and to educate our children. We depend on them for our day-to-day living expenses, as do other people in the work force.

For many, such as single parents, this is the family's only income, and to have it taken away for three weeks would be a severe hardship. Please keep in mind that this "furlough" is staggered over a period of time, so the employee cannot receive unemployment compensation; but the overall loss of income is still three weeks'.

In the private sector when layoffs occur, it usually is because business is slack. While there are no funds to pay employees, neither is there work for them to do.

There is no reduction in the amount of services that state employees are expected to provide. In fact, in time of recession, many state offices, such as the Virginia Employment Commission and Social Services, have sharply increased workloads. Our office is already burdened with more work than employees can do in normal hours. We frequently come in early and work through lunch breaks, and I often work on Saturdays.

We have six clerical employees. With three weeks' "furlough" per employee, that means more than four months that our office would be understaffed. This is an added burden for those not on "furlough" to double up for those who are. It is inevitable that there will be delays and errors that will result in problems for the general public.

The idea that employees would continue to work through this time without pay is ridiculous. Most employees could not afford to buy gas or pay for child care in order to work for nothing, and I believe that in most cases, it is a violation of federal labor laws to allow them to work without compensation.

I take exception to the statement that the governor is not trying to balance the budget on the backs of state workers. Would the newspaper be willing to have each of its employees take three weeks of unpaid leave, the other employees doing extra work so that the paper is printed and delivered as usual, and donate these salaries to help with the budget crunch? This is, in effect, what we are being asked to do.

If the state is having a problem, it is a state problem - not a state employees' problem. Services provided by state employees are for all citizens of Virginia, as are taxes paid by all. If the recession continues, we may all have to make sacrifices, but the burden should be borne by all Virginians and not just one select group.

My position in life is not such that this loss of income would be crippling to me, and I already put in a number of hours working for free. My opposition is because of what it will do to my staff and how difficult it will be for my office to operate.

I believe that the editors need to look at opposing views and what this would do to state agencies. The consequences of this proposal are far-reaching, and I do not believe that they were considered as carefully as they should have been.

by CNB