lives of residents.

The jobs of several Bermudian employees of the US Naval Air Station are being axed as a result of the continued "draw-down'' of the base's civilian and military workforce, NAS public affairs officer Ens. Marie McGahan said in a statement yesterday.

As many as six locals could be affected by the lay-offs, effective June 5.

Ens. McGahan said it was "the first time in many years'' that NAS had been required to lay off "appropriated fund'' employees.

But the move was necessary to meet fiscal year 1993 budget limitations, she said.

The salaries of appropriated fund employees are paid from US Congressional appropriations as opposed to those whose salaries are paid by funds generated by naval activity through the sale of goods and services, she explained. Ens.

McGahan noted that during the past three years a total of 74 appropriated fund civilian jobs had been eliminated through retirement, voluntary resignations and US citizens returning to America.

Lay-offs of Bermudians were necessary as the base struggled to properly operate in light of US Defence Budget cuts, brought on by the end of the Cold War, recession and a change in Government.

"With the much larger reduction in the military workforce and the continuing draw down of authorised civilian billets, it has now become necessary to terminate some locally employed personnel to avoid serious imbalances in workforce skills required to operate the base,'' Ens McGahan said.

Information obtained by The Royal Gazette showed that the civilian payroll amounted to some $12 million last year. And the number of civilian employees at NAS is now 499, having dropped from 623 in 1990. It is not known how many of those employees are Bermudian.

The lay-offs come amid unease over the future of the base following a report on ABC TV's Prime Time Live portraying NAS as the Navy's "Club Med''.

A subsequent report on the programme said a US Department of Defence report obtained by anchor Sam Donaldson called for the closure of NAS by 1995.