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New Jersey State Workers Rally Against Cuts
Hundreds of state workers and retirees in New Jersey represented by CWA and other unions rallied outside the statehouse in Trenton on May 16 to protest possible cuts in their medical plans and risky changes to their pensions.
Protesters shouted, "We are not the problem," and said some state officials are unfairly pinning the state's budget problems on them. Other leaders are firmly standing by the workers.
"Without these people, our state would be in vastly worse shape than it is," Democratic Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein said, quoted by the Trenton Times. "The (benefits) are tremendous costs, but we can't talk about threatening or cutting things people already have."
In his budget address in March, acting New Jersey Gov. Richard J. Codey said the state was looking at a $4 billion deficit and blamed workers' benefit plans. "These entitlements are the driving force behind the increase in state spending each and every year," he said.
Republican Assemblyman Bill Baroni also spoke in support of the workers, saying the state first needs to root out politicians' abuse of public money before taking away from employees, Newsday reported. "These are not the rich folks. These are not the people with two and three pensions," Baroni was quoted as saying, referring to officials who hold more than one public job to boost their benefits.
The state's proposals include removing the cap on retirees' prescription drug costs and diversifying workers' pension funds, which employees said they fear could leave them with far smaller pensions.
In an op-ed column published in the Asbury Park Press, Carla Katz, president of CWA Local 1034, said the "overheated anti-union rhetoric" in the press and from the governor's office has "created the worst climate for public workers since the anti-labor days of the Whitman administration."
"Public workers are not getting rich on the backs of taxpayers," Katz wrote. "Public workers, who earn an average of $50,000 a year and who can retire after 25 years with an average pension of $27,000, are not the culprits in the state's fiscal crisis. Public workers have traded hundreds of millions of dollars in wage increases, and forgone promotions and higher private-sector wages to help the state and local governments meet their fiscal challenges."
Katz said further that CWA's public sector locals, and other unions, have tried to work with the state to contain health care costs, "such as pooling the purchase of prescription drugs, expanding disease management programs and increasing the use of generic drugs."
"The state needs to work with public sector unions, not attack our members' benefits," she said.
Protesters shouted, "We are not the problem," and said some state officials are unfairly pinning the state's budget problems on them. Other leaders are firmly standing by the workers.
"Without these people, our state would be in vastly worse shape than it is," Democratic Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein said, quoted by the Trenton Times. "The (benefits) are tremendous costs, but we can't talk about threatening or cutting things people already have."
In his budget address in March, acting New Jersey Gov. Richard J. Codey said the state was looking at a $4 billion deficit and blamed workers' benefit plans. "These entitlements are the driving force behind the increase in state spending each and every year," he said.
Republican Assemblyman Bill Baroni also spoke in support of the workers, saying the state first needs to root out politicians' abuse of public money before taking away from employees, Newsday reported. "These are not the rich folks. These are not the people with two and three pensions," Baroni was quoted as saying, referring to officials who hold more than one public job to boost their benefits.
The state's proposals include removing the cap on retirees' prescription drug costs and diversifying workers' pension funds, which employees said they fear could leave them with far smaller pensions.
In an op-ed column published in the Asbury Park Press, Carla Katz, president of CWA Local 1034, said the "overheated anti-union rhetoric" in the press and from the governor's office has "created the worst climate for public workers since the anti-labor days of the Whitman administration."
"Public workers are not getting rich on the backs of taxpayers," Katz wrote. "Public workers, who earn an average of $50,000 a year and who can retire after 25 years with an average pension of $27,000, are not the culprits in the state's fiscal crisis. Public workers have traded hundreds of millions of dollars in wage increases, and forgone promotions and higher private-sector wages to help the state and local governments meet their fiscal challenges."
Katz said further that CWA's public sector locals, and other unions, have tried to work with the state to contain health care costs, "such as pooling the purchase of prescription drugs, expanding disease management programs and increasing the use of generic drugs."
"The state needs to work with public sector unions, not attack our members' benefits," she said.