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Show Two scholarships awarded at UPEA dinner The Utah Public Employees Association's (UPEA) Uintah Basin District, held its annual Fall Dinner Meeting in the Aspen Cove Restaurant, Nov. 14. Two scholarships were awarded at the dinner to Bert Peterson, a social worker for Social Services Unified district, and to Ann Carroll, a dependent depen-dent of an employee. Peterson is working full-time and going to school part-time in the Master of Social Work Program. He is married and the father of three children. Miss Carroll, daughter of Leland and Geraldine Carroll, is attending Weber State College in the College of Nursing. She has worked for two summers at the Uintah County Hospital as an aide while attending school. Speakers at the meeting included Wayne L. Shreeve, UPEA president, J. Francis Valerga, legal counsel and acting executive director, and Rebecca McKay, research analyst. Shreeve spoke to the group concerning con-cerning worker's low pay and said "public employee families are being asked to subsidize public services." Shreeve said government workers must focus on a better image and improve communications with both the public and lawmakers. "It's ironic," Shreeve said, "that surveys disclose public employees in Utah are the best educated in the nation are fewer in numbers, and more productive in their work. Yet, they rank fourth from the bottom among all states in average pay." Valerga discussed the squeeze play in which public employees find themselves them-selves when taxpayers demand cuts in spending, but not programs. He also said, "Spending cutbacks without corresponding cuts in programs are unreasonable. However, the taxpayers don't perceive it that way, so the great equalizer is to reach into the pay package of the employee, to subsidize the programs when the spending is cut." Miss McKay said her top priority is to represent state employees on the Personnel Advisory Committee, which is implementing new rules and regulations. There is a need to safeguard the merit principle and not allow government to return to the "Spoils System." Also on the dinner agenda was the presentation of two outstanding Public Employee Awards. Selected for the awards by the District were Mathea Anderson, a Mental Health Counselor, employed by the Department of Social Services and George Dimick, employed by the Highway Patr.ol. |