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

DATE: FRIDAY, March 3, 1995                   TAG: 9503030104
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                LENGTH: Medium

ALLEN URGED TO HINT FATE OF JOBS BILL

A state employee organization is urging Gov. George Allen to say this week whether he will sign a bill providing an early retirement program and cash incentives for workers to leave their state jobs.

The bill, passed during the General Assembly session that ended Saturday, gives state employees until March 31 to decide what to do. Allen has until March 27 to sign the bill.

If the governor waits until the last day to sign the Workforce Transition Act of 1995, employees will have only four days to apply for the program.

Joan Dent, executive director of the Virginia Governmental Employees Association, said her office has received more than 400 calls in recent days from state workers who are confused about their situation.

``The governor may be absolutely convinced he doesn't like this plan, ... but state employees are entitled to know what he plans to do,'' Dent said Thursday.

To further complicate matters, Allen has extended for at least a month his own state employee buyout plan, which is less generous than the one approved by the assembly.

Allen's proposal gives employees up to nine weeks' pay for leaving state service. The assembly's plan allows employees to retire at age 50 with 10 years of service and provides greater cash incentives for other workers who quit and severance pay for employees who are fired.

Dent said the legislation ``would be a fair and equitable means of meeting the governor's objectives to downsize the work force.''

VGEA officials have asked their members to call the governor's office and urge him to say whether he will sign the bill immediately, wait until the last day or veto the measure.

``We hope the governor signs the bill, but if he feels he must veto it, an announcement should be made immediately,'' she said.

Allen spokeswoman Melissa Herring Dickie said the legislation has not reached the governor's desk. ``As soon as it makes its way up here, he will review it,'' she said. ``This bill has a tremendous fiscal impact, and he's going to have to take a look at that.''

She said severance pay alone would cost about $10 million in the first year.

by CNB