Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 27, 1994 TAG: 9404270057
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By LEIGH ANNE LARANCE CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"I still answer the phone, I still greet visitors,'' said Patti Hall, a secretary at Virginia Tech. "But I also counsel students, pay bills, supervise people ... give advice and help as a staff member [to] make major decisions for the honors and pre-med programs here at Tech,'' she said. "I don't think I'm unusual. I think our profession is changing.''
Hall keeps up with trends in her industry as president of the New River Valley chapter of Professional Secretaries International, which is sponsoring Professional Secretaries Day.
Its purpose is to recognize a profession sometimes dogged by misconceptions
"Several years ago I had applied for a position ... and was immediately told that it would be my responsibility to make sure the boss had his haircut scheduled and that his wife received flowers,'' Hall said. "My response was, 'Thanks for the interview, but I'm not interested.' I don't see myself being a social calendar for anyone.''
The stereotypes just don't fit the mold.
"You can sit at a phone and look pretty, but that's not for me,'' said medical secretary Anna Marie Richardson. "I don't even know if you would call those people secretaries. Not in this day and time.''
Not in any day and time, said Ruby Smith, a veteran clerk typist who started out in 1935 typing on an Underwood and retired a few years ago on an IBM Selectric.
"I never did work for anyone where I had to ... go to the bank or shop for their wives,'' she said. "I never had them chasing me around the desk, either.''
"My bosses, they were super, every one of them. ... Every one of them called me Mrs. Smith,'' she said. "Not that it mattered.''
What did matter was that they had respect for her and for her work.
Professional Secretaries International says there are more than 4 million secretaries in the United States alone.
Some reports say that number is on the decline because as corporations downsize, they eliminate support staff along with layers of middle management.
But the secretaries organization estimates that from 1992 to 2005, there will be a more than 12 percent growth in the number of secretaries.
The different predictions might be attributed to changing job responsibilities and changing job titles, said Linda Doggett, a spokeswoman for the Kansas City-based organization.
Hall officially is a program support technician, for instance. Stenographers, data entry technicians and executive assistants also fall under the organization's definition of secretary.
The changes are more than cosmetic.
Most are the result of changing technology, Hall said.
"I can remember when ... I used to hate to see my boss put a manuscript on my desk,'' she said. "I used to cringe, because if he added or deleted one word, we had to redo the manuscript from that page to the end.''
With word processing, what used to take hours now takes a few keystrokes, which means more time for more responsibilities. Secretaries have had to learn to do spreadsheets, manage computer databases, run desktop publishing programs, supervise other employees and play a role in an organization's decision-making.
But greater responsibility hasn't brought with it greater compensation. Hall said that while she has been fortunate at Tech, not all secretaries have seen the rewards of a changing profession. "As a whole, in the New River Valley, secretaries take on more of the managerial positions with no pay increase, or minimal pay increases.''
Richardson considers herself luck. The secretary to the administrator and assistant administrator of St. Albans Psychiatric Hospital in Radford said she has found challenge and opportunity in her more than two decades as a secretary in Southwestern Virginia. "I think it opens up a lot of doors.''
It's also a profession in which you can find a job quickly because it encompasses a range of skills, she said. "With all the technology, we're able to do more and more and more,'' Richardson said. "I love what I do.''
Bettering Our Best is the theme of the 20th annual seminar being presented by Professional Secretaries International today at the Best Western Red Lion Inn in Blacksburg.
The day's schedule begins with exhibits from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; registration and social hour at 11 a.m., followed by the luncheon at noon.
Peggy Dunn from New River Community College will be the luncheon speaker, discussing "Looking at Our Personal Best"
The day's activities continue with afternoon seminars at 2-2:45 p.m. and 3:15-4 p.m. on "Managing Stress Effectively" and "Making a Splash in the Job Market." The afternoon's events close with a social and fashion show at 4:30 p.m.
Carol Bailey from Virginia Tech will be the speaker at the dinner at 6 p.m. on "Our Bodies: Our Selves, Food, Bodies and Self-Esteem.
by CNB