The Virginian-Pilot
                             THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Sunday, July 17, 1994                  TAG: 9407150220
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS      PAGE: 06   EDITION: FINAL 
TYPE: Editorial 
                                             LENGTH: Short :   33 lines

LAID-OFF CITY EMPLOYEES CONCERN A BIT BELATED

City Council revisited the recent layoffs at a Tuesday work session, when city staff accentuated the positive.

For example, eight more of the 35 will be able to retire by December. Another 15 have applied for one of more than 100 other city jobs, some of them advertised the day after the layoffs, and three already have been offered new positions.

Personnel Director Charlotte Fletcher gave this glowing report and even went on to say that some laid-off city employees are seeing their jobless state as an ``opportunity'' to go back to school or change directions in life.

All of the concern and activity on behalf of the laid-off workers is no more than they should expect.

The nagging question: Why wasn't all of this done before the layoffs? Why put people through the agonies of losing a job when such alternatives were available?

KEYWORDS: PORTSMOUTH CITY COUNCIL

PORTSMOUTH CITY EMPLOYEES LAY OFFS

by CNB