THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT  
              Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Friday, November 17, 1995              TAG: 9511160013
SECTION: FRONT                    PAGE: A22  EDITION: FINAL 
TYPE: Letter 
                                             LENGTH: Short :   29 lines

TIME OFF - AND GLAD OF IT

Steven K. Baines (letter, Nov. 5) would have us believe that since he may work on the Thanksgiving Day holidays that Governor Allen is giving state employees, he will lose the days off.

Correctional officers work in prisons and prisons are manned 24 hours a day. When a Department of Corrections employee works on a holiday, he or she has one year from that date to take the day off. If one quits or is terminated in that year, he or she receives one day's pay for the holiday worked.

I'm sure that Governor Allen would love to let every state employee off on holidays, but by nature of this job I have accepted the responsibility and the duty to work when needed (a lockdown situation, filling in for a sick employee or emergency equipment maintenance), knowing that I will get the time off later.

I accept these conditions of employment or I would not work for the Department of Corrections. I am grateful to Governor Allen for the time off.

BOB WRAY

Virginia Beach, Nov. 6, 1995 by CNB