University of Virginia Library

Battle Says Holton's
Promise 'Not Enough'

Democratic Gubernatorial candidate
William C. Battle said yesterday
he was glad to hear that his
Republican foe, Linwood Holton,
"will not fire anyone" if elected
governor, but that "Mr. Holton's
generalities are not enough," the
Associated Press reported.

Contending that he has proposed
a program that will assure
Virginia's government of being
"effectively and efficiently staffed"
in the 1970s, Mr. Battle charged
that Mr. Holton has outline no such
program.

Referring to a news conference
by Mr. Holton Monday in Richmond
at which the GOP nominee
said the 50,000 state employees
would be in no danger of dismissal
if he is elected governor.

"He (Mr. Holton) is going to
review certain state employee problems,
study others, improve morale
and not fire anyone. Or so he said.

"Our state employees know
about studies and they know about
reviews. What they want are specifies,"
Mr. Battle said in remarks
prepared for a Roanoke campaign
breakfast.

Later in the day, the Democratic
nominee was to head for Richmond
for a speech to the local Jaycees.

At his news conference in
Richmond Monday. Mr. Holton
said there has been "scare propaganda"
and a "whisper campaign"
among state employees that there
would be wholesale dismissals if he
were elected.

Mr. Holton said he wasn't
prepared to say who was spreading
such rumors, but that they were
not true - that Virginia "has
qualified, competent, dedicated and
efficient personnel at all levels" and
that "these people have no reason
to fear the loss of their jobs as the
result of political considerations."

The Republican candidate outlined
a series of other proposals he
said would benefit state workers,
among them:

An updating of job specifications
and pay scales, and a review
of job security problems.

A "hard look" at what he
called the "unreasonable low" two
per cent interest rate now paid on
state employees' retirement benefits,
and adoption of an employee
health insurance program in which
the state would pay part of the
premiums.