SHAMOKIN DAM — State workers from the Valley feeling the pinch of reduced paychecks gathered in the parking lot of a department store Tuesday before taking their signs, and complaints, aboard buses to Harrisburg.
That's where the General Assembly, and Gov. Ed Rendell, have not been able to hash out a state budget, one that is now 29 days overdue.
For those state workers who saw their paychecks reduced by 30 percent on July 17, Friday will be even worse. That's when payless paydays "” one result of the impasse "” begin.
"The inmates are getting paid to work and we're not," said Sandy McAndrew, of Mount Carmel. "People on welfare are getting paid, and we're not. That governor doesn't care."
McAndrew, an employee at the State Correctional Institution at Coal Township, doesn't fear the pay stoppage for herself as much as she does for others.
"I'm OK because I'm a single person," McAndrew said. "These people that have kids, they have no money to buy groceries, and where are they going to get that money at? No one cares. That governor doesn't care one bit about us. He doesn't know how it feels. His wife is a federal judge. She's getting paid."
As the buses' arrival neared, more and more protesters started to crowd the parking lot, many with signs.
"They should have done something with the budget sooner," said Nancy Rearick, of Selinsgrove. "A lot of our credit is going to be ruined and a lot of our stuff is going to be taken away. It's not fair, especially if you live paycheck to paycheck. Somebody needs to do their job, and do it better. I don't know what to do, so I'm going to rally."
Rearick is appreciative her husband, Kenneth Rearick, is employed and receiving checks from his welding job. Rearick works at Selinsgrove Center and helps care for elderly patients.
"I'm fortunate enough to have a husband that works," Rearick said. "A lot of people, husband and wife, both work for the state. They don't have anything. What are they supposed to do?"
As the budget process drags on, workers in small towns have felt abandoned by the government, the protesters said.
"Why not pay us?" said Tina Burgess, of Danville, a licensed practical nurse at Danville State Hospital. "I've been working for the state for 25 years and now I'm not getting paid. Why should they hold us hostage? I'm in a financial crisis right now."
n E-mail comments to bcrossley@dailyitem.com
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