New Jersey Public Safety Officers Law Blog : New Jersey Public Safety Employee Lawyer & Attorney : Pellettieri, Rabstein & Altman Law Firm : Workers Compensation, Discipline Representation for Police & Firefighters : New Jersey

As reported by nj.com, people who intentionally kill police dogs or dogs involved in search and rescue operations are now facing stiffer penalties in New Jersey.

Governor Chris Christie recently signed legislation that mandates minimum five-year prison terms, with no chance of parole, for such offenders, who also will face fines of up to $15,000. Previously, the maximum sentence they faced was just three to five years in prison.

The measure, named for a police dog killed in the line of duty last November, was overwhelmingly passed by the Assembly and Senate earlier this year. It then took effect immediately after Christie signed it late last month.  The legislation honors Schultz, a 3 ½ year old German Shepherd who served with the Gloucester Township police force.

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As reported by nj.com, for the second year in a row, public employees across New Jersey are retiring at a record rate, state figures show. Nearly 15,000 public workers are expected to retire from January through the end of July, a slight increase from the same period last year, when a record number of state employees left their jobs.

The steady rise in retirements comes amid economic uncertainty, with changes in pension and health benefits for public employees remaining at the top of the state’s political agenda. As a result, an increasing number of the more than 500,000 state and municipal employees are choosing to retire rather than risk having their benefits cut by legislators.

“People have a certain set of expectations, and at some point, it just makes sense to retire,” said Jim Ryan, a spokesman for the state Policemen’s Benevolent Association. Ryan said retirements, combined with layoffs, have left police departments across the state understaffed and in many cases without the streetwise experience needed to conduct adequate investigations.

The numbers provided by the state Treasurer’s office show that State Police officers are also retiring at a record pace, a trend that the superintendent recently told a state Senate committee was disturbing. By the end of July, records show, 144 state troopers are expected to retire, significantly higher than any 12-month period since at least 2000. In the previous decade, an average of 61 state troopers retired each year.

Overall, more than 20,000 public workers retired last year, a 60 percent increase over 2009 and the highest number in at least a decade, according to the state Department of the Treasury. The unexpected surge may eventually force the state to pay more money into its troubled pension fund. Every three years, the state examines such assumptions as retirement rates and employee levels, which serve as the basis for pension payments, and adjusts accordingly. The next study will look at the three-year period from June 2008 to June 2011, when retirements jumped.

While public employees ponder whether to remain at their jobs or retire and lock in their benefits, Governor Chris Christie and Democratic leaders are trying to work out the details of health and pension reform. Under all of the proposals that have been floated so far, public employees who have spent a prescribed amount of time on the job, generally 25 years, would not have their benefits cut upon retirement.

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As reported by nj.com, after asserting for months that state employee health benefits will be overhauled through legislation, Governor Chris Christie’s office is now seeking the changes through collective bargaining with the state’s largest employee union.

“He’s out of his cage!” read a memo to Communications Workers of America members obtained by the Star-Ledger, joking about Christie’s comments in March that he was looking forward to collective bargaining. “Let me at them,” Christie said at the time, showing his willingness to go out and negotiate. “Get me out of the cage and let me go.”

At a Statehouse news conference Thursday, Christie called the offer to unions a “good faith effort” but reiterated his desire to have the Legislature pass a bill and force the unions to accept his plan to make them pay 30 percent of the cost of health benefits. “We can chew gum and walk at the same time,” Christie said.

Hetty Rosenstein, the state director for the CWA, said she is optimistic moving forward. “We hope that we can begin to engage in serious negotiations with the governor,” Rosenstein said.

The governor’s initial offer to employees at the bargaining table was nearly identical to the proposal he sent to the Legislature-having workers pay 30 percent of the cost of their insurance premiums, according to the memo. In addition, the administration could increase co-pays for the duration of the four-year contract.

The offer came during the seventh meeting between the CWA and the governor’s office to negotiate a new contract for the 40,000 employees the union represents. The current contract expires on June 30.

“The Senate president has said all along that he believes the governor should at least hear the unions out at the table, so he is very happy with the administration’s action,” said Chris Donnelly, a Senate Democratic spokesman.

Jeff Keefe, a labor professor at Rutgers University, said Christie was probably trying to short-circuit the unfair practice charge recently filed against him by the CWA, since efforts to legislate benefit changes could be halted if PERC sided with the union. “I don’t think they’re going to have any meaningful give and take at the bargaining table,” Keefe said. “He wants to avoid having PERC rule against him. That would throw the whole budget situation up in the air.”

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As reported by nj.com, Governor Chris Christie began bargaining over health benefits for state employees this week, according to a memo sent out to members of the Communications Workers of America obtained by the Star-Ledger.

Christie has been adamant for months that he would obtain changes to employee health benefits through legislation. The new offer, similar to the one he publicly proposed that would require state employees to pay 30 percent of the cost of the insurance premium, came when his staff sat down to negotiate with the CWA, the largest public employee union, on Thursday, according to the memo. The new offer also would allow the state to change the cost of employee co-pays for the life of the four-year contract.   

The CWA has filed a complaint with the Public Employment Relations Commission alleging violations of state employment law when Christie refused to negotiate over health benefits. That complaint is still pending.

“This kind of proposal is regressive and hurts lower paid workers and families,” the memo states. “However, we will continue to bargain health care according to our principles of affordability and maintaining quality care. Now that there is finally a proposal from the state, we will press for real bargaining to take place.”

Christie spokesman Kevin Roberts said they continue to push for legislation to change health benefits. “In keeping with the ongoing collective bargaining process, the Administration presented its proposals on economic issues that are subject to negotiation,” Roberts said in an email. “Gov. Christie’s position is clear on the issue of health benefits reform-bipartisan legislation to accomplish comprehensive changes and achieve savings for taxpayers is the only way real reform of the system will happen. We will continue to work with the Legislature to that effect.”

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As reported by nj.com, state workers have begun wearing red arm bands to voice their opposition to proposals that would slash their health benefits. The arm bands are being distributed by the Communications Workers of America, the largest public employee union in New Jersey that represents most of the state’s professional rank and file staff.

The signs read, “CWA Local 1033 Workers, Fighting for Health Care Plus Retirement $ecurity.” The bands are attached with an elastic strip and were spotted on workers in Trenton dressed in business attire.

Hetty Rosenstein, CWA state director, said the arm bands are intended to raise awareness about the proposals. “The armbands are a powerful reminder of what this fight is really about: basic rights for the hardworking men and women who serve New Jersey,” Rosenstein said in a statement. “Governor Christie is trying to take away what every working person deserves—health care they can afford and the ability to retire after a lifetime of work.”

Christie has proposed making state employees pay 30 percent of the cost of health care premiums, a change that would be achieved through legislation. Currently, state workers pay 1.5 percent of their salary toward health benefits.

Christie spokesman Michael Drewniak said the arm bands demonstrate a “disconnect.” “What’s bemusing is that their arm bands say they are fighting for retirement security and lifetime health care benefits,” Drewniak said in a statement. “So are we, because if serious reforms are not instituted, there will be no pension system and dwindling health benefits at best. The CWA’s disconnect and denial with these mathematical certainties is always puzzling.”

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As reported by nj.com, Governor Chris Christie challenged lawmakers last May to pass a series of bills he said would lower property taxes, but a year later, with only some of the reforms enacted, property taxes are up $1 billion. Depending on who’s talking, the impasse on Christie’s reform package, what he calls the “tool kit,” speaks to either the governor’s poor vision and execution, or the Legislature’s lack of urgency and political courage.

Although some big pieces of his reform effort have been enacted, Christie has repeatedly criticized lawmakers in recent weeks for failing to clear the remaining bills. He labels them “do-nothing” legislators who get poor grades for choosing special interests over lower property taxes. Democratic legislative leaders counter Christie by blaming him for both designing a flawed blueprint to lower property taxes, and for being unwilling to compromise on some of the measures that lawmakers have advanced with amendments. Regardless of which side is right, property owners in New Jersey continue to be the losers during the yearlong debate because they are stuck with average annual property tax bills that continue to rise toward $10,000. 

The average property tax bill in New Jersey increased last year by $295 to a record high of $7,576. That increase came during a year that saw Christie and lawmakers pass a state budget that replaced $1,000 property tax rebate checks with a small credit that was not realized until earlier this year. 

Once again, each side is blaming the other for the increase in property tax bills. Christie says the Democrats own the increase because they have not moved all of his legislation. Democrats say Christie’s bills, even if passed, would have had a marginal effect at best in the face of state school aid cuts and the loss of the rebates.

The full article on nj.com shows where things stand right now with the key pieces of Christie’s proposed “tool kit” reforms, to include what has passed, what has stalled, and what they are saying.

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As reported by nj.com, the Reverend Al Sharpton stepped into New Jersey’s budget battle, joining a chorus of union leaders criticizing Governor Chris Christie’s economic policies and urging New Jerseyans to push back against a nationwide campaign to weaken organized labor. At rallies in Newark, Trenton, and Vineland, Sharpton said the state would be violating its workers’ civil rights if it reneges on its pension commitments. He also chastised Christie for feuding with teachers, and warned that governors across the country are on a mission to balance their budgets at the expense of the working class.

“We can cut back people’s pensions. We can lay off workers. We can close hospitals, schools, psychiatric centers. We can deal with changing tenure for teachers-but don’t touch the rich,” Sharpton said at Shiloh Baptist Church in Trenton. “They have become the sacred cow that can’t be touched…while workers become the slaughtered lamb.”

Two national union leaders joined Sharpton onstage and blamed Wall Street’s recklessness for the budget deficits afflicting Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey and other states where governors have squared off with unions. “That’s what this coordinated attack is. It’s saying to workers, ‘I know you didn’t create the problem, but you solve it,” Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers. “That’s what we’re fighting.”

Christie has called for an overhaul of the state’s pension and health benefits systems for public workers, but has yet to hammer out a deal with the Democrats in control of the Legislature. The two sides have until June 30 to settle on a budget deal for the coming fiscal year. In recent weeks, that debate has been a bitter back-and-forth, with the governor accusing the Legislature of inaction at this town hall events while Democrats fight back in their budget hearings. At the Trenton rally, two Assembly Democrats said Christie was bullying the working class to burnish his conservative credentials.

At the rally in Newark, Sharpton urged 150 anti-violence activists, clergy, and workers to unite against the governor’s efforts to undermine organized labor and implement damaging economic policies. “We have fought governors before and we will stand up to this one,” he said.

Unions have staged several rallies in Trenton this year echoing Sharpton’s message, including one headlined by the AFL-CIO national president in February that drew more than 3,000 people.

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As reported by nj.com, Governor Chris Christie estimates his plan to overhaul the state’s public employee health benefits system will save more than $870 million a year by 2014 by shifting significant percentage of the costs to employees and future retirees, according to the Treasury Department.

In the most detailed explanation of the proposal to date, Treasury spokesman Andrew Pratt said the governor wants to gradually increase state employee health benefit contributions over three years, requiring them to pay 10 percent of premiums this July and climbing to 30 percent by July 2014. New workers would immediately pay 30 percent. Currently, state employees pay 1.5 percent of their salary for medical benefits. Most Democratic lawmakers and budget observers believed Christie wanted employees to start paying 30 percent of their premiums immediately and assumed that was how he justified savings of $370 million in his proposed state budget.

In response to requests from The Star-Ledger, the administration says the final tally is more than $870 million and the proposal would involve much more than increased contributions, such as tiered plans, increased co-pays and lengthening the eligibility requirements for post-employment health care. The savings represent about one-third of the $2.5 billion the state expects to pay in employee medical costs this year, Pratt said. They would also dwarf initial estimates of a proposal by Senate President Stephen Sweeney, who wants contributions to be based on salary.

Democratic lawmakers who were already skeptical about the $370 million in savings in the proposed budget expressed more disbelief about the latest figures, with the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee calling them “ridiculous.” The Christie plan would not change payouts for current retirees and workers with at least 25 years on the job when the measure takes effect would not be required to pay more when they retire. But, all others would have to pay 30 percent after they retire and workers would not be eligible for post-retirement health coverage unless they work for 30 years, up from 25 years.

With no Republican bill and a lack of Democratic support for Sweeney’s proposal, Christie’s budgeted $370 million in health benefit savings is on shaky ground. It is one of several uncertainties in the governor’s budget. The State Supreme Court is considering whether Christie needs to restore up to $1.6 billion in education cuts and the administration has yet to explain how it plans to achieve $300 million in Medicaid savings through a federal waiver, which faces layers of approvals. “There could be a lot of problems,” said Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Lou Greenwald. “I hate to see him strike out on all three of these.”

To read the article in full, click here.

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As reported by nj.com, Governor Chris Christie and State Senate President Stephen Sweeney will speak with elected officials from Camden County about the benefits of consolidating local police and fire departments. The meeting will take place March 23, 2011 at Camden County College and is closed to the public and media. Christie is scheduled to meet with reporters afterward. 

No New Jersey county has gone as far as mass consolidations of its public safety forces, though smaller combinations are becoming more appealing in some places amid a government budget crunch. The discussion is timely in Camden County because the City of Camden recently laid off nearly half its police officers and the county prosecutor’s office is facing deep layoffs in coming weeks.

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As reported by nj.com, a security decision by State Police to turn union members away from the Statehouse hours before the Senate went into session was criticized as unfair by a key lawmaker and public employee unions. About 50 public employee union members trying to participate in a lobbying day never got inside the Statehouse on March 21, 2011, which was the third day of collective bargaining meetings between Communication Workers of America, the state’s largest union, leaders and Governor Chris Christie’s office.

It is not unusual for groups to flood the Statehouse halls and meet with their individual representatives and talk to others in the hallways. It was the first time CWA political director Bob Master encountered a problem with members passing security. “This came as a complete surprise, and they dug out this policy from 1997, which no one had ever seen before,” Master said. “It seems like a systematic effort to prevent people from engaging in the democratic process.” 

People were delayed entering the building because they were headed to packed areas, said State Police spokesman Sgt. Stephen Jones. “We are in charge of the security of that building, and we’re only going to do things in the interest of that security,” Jones said. “There was no attempt to stifle any opinion or keep any group out. We’re only concerned with the security and safety of those in that building.” When someone enters the Statehouse, State Police require a destination be designated. When a large number of CWA members all gave the same destination, police stopped the group when the room’s maximum occupancy was reached, Jones said.    

Senator Loretta Weinberg questioned whether the size of the group, estimated by union officials at about 150, came close to creating any safety concerns, adding that the Statehouse has been filled with many more people on other days. Weinberg said she suspects someone told State Police to turn the union members away, but she does not know who was behind the restrictions. She added that she hopes legislation or a resolution is not needed to prevent a similar event from happening again. “I feel very passionately about this, the Statehouse is owned by the people,” Weinberg said. “I would never recommend to anyone that you try to control public opinion by controlling the public.”

Christie spokesman Michael Drewniak said his office was not aware of the issue and no directive had come from the administration to turn people away. “I don’t think anybody should be turned away from the Statehouse, but we leave security decisions up to the State Police,” Drewniak said.

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As reported by nj.com, representatives for Governor Chris Christie have told the state’s largest union that the administration’s plan to sharply increase health care costs for public employees was not negotiable, union leaders said. 

The Governor’s issue first took the issue of health care costs off the table when negotiations over a new contract got underway. However, union officials said they were determined to have a voice in changes to their benefits. “It represents a pretty fundamental attack on a long-established right to bargain over health care which goes back as long as there has been unions in New Jersey,” said Bob Masters, political director for the Communications Workers of America, which represents that state’s public employees. “We are going to insist that our legal right to bargain over health care can be honored by this governor as it has been by every governor.”

Instead, a spokesman for Christie said the governor planned to stick to his plan to have state employees to pay 30 percent of their health care premiums by requiring it through having the legislature enact a law. Union members currently pay 1.5 percent of their salary for health care coverage. “We and the Senate president are pursuing that area in the same way through legislation,” the spokesman, Michael Drewniak, said.

Christie contends that he does not have to negotiate over increasing health care costs because in the past, the unions, at least in some instances, appealed directly to the Legislature. The last time employees saw an increase in their contributions was in 2007, when Governor Jon Corzine reached an agreement with the union requiring members to pay 1.5 percent of their salary for benefits.

Masters said the governor’s office could not provide an example of the union skipping collective bargaining. A spokesman for the Assembly Majority, Tom Hester said it was the responsibility of Christie’s office to engage in collective bargaining with the union. “This governor spends a lot of time bragging about his ability to shake up government,” Hester said, “so it’s time to him to back his talk and prove his worth at the bargaining table, where health insurance matters have traditionally been decided.”

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As reported by trentonian.com, Governor Chris Christie quietly receives an expense account of $95,000 a year and does not have to tell anyone how it is spent. This annual “allowance” is being renewed for fiscal year 2012, continuing a 35 year old custom to make sure the Governor has enough dough to pay for official receptions in the State and for the general upkeep ofDrumthwacket, the State executive mansion in Princeton, and other expenses.

The $95,000 expense account is atop the $175,000 a year salary Christiegets as governor. Not only is the $95,000 expense account more than half his yearly salary, there is no law, rule, or requirement to make the payouts public. None of the eight governors who had the expense accounts have had to tell the people what happened to the money.

The authorization for the expense account is listed in the Chief Executive portion of the budget with the following description: “Allowance to the Governor of funds not otherwise appropriated, for official reception on behalf of the state, operation of an official residence and other expenses.”

The account was first created for Governor Brendan Byrne in the mid-1970s and has been renewed automatically every year since. The amount was boosted from $75,000 to $95,000 a year Governor Christine Whitman 12 years ago.

The late Democrat Assemblyman Alan Karcher of Middlesex County bristled that there was no accounting of the governor’s expense allowance. He felt it should be public, but his efforts failed to make it so because the consensus was and still is that such a move would be demeaning to a governor. So, to this day, the expense account of the governor, at $95,000 a year, is the only line item in the entire budget that is not public. 

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As reported by app.com, State Senate President Stephen Sweeney said he will push for a law aimed at moving the State’s 566 municipalities into shared-service agreements. Sweeney said he would introduce the legislation this week.

The bill is expected to revive the Local Unit Alignment, Reorganization and Consolidation Commission (“LUARC”), created some four years ago, but which lost its funding in the current state budget. Under the current proposal, municipalities would be encouraged to come up with shared-services plans. If towns fail to make arrangements to share services, the commission could go into those towns and recommend plans that would be put to voters for approval. Voters would have to approve the measure in order for the municipality to avoid a reduction in state aid corresponding to the amount of money that would have been saved through the shared services agreement.  

Although numerous government entities across the state have begun to share services, Sweeney’s plan, if enacted, would represent the first effort by state government to push municipalities to do such things as combine police forces or fire departments, merge garbage pickup, or purchase items in bulk together. 

Sweeney, at a meeting with the Editorial Board of the Asbury Park Press, said he also wants to encourage counties to share services. “If you don’t want more cost-effective government, that’s fine, but (the state) shouldn’t be subsidizing it,” Sweeney said. He also said that local voters are often reluctant to approve or support plans that result in the layoffs or demotions of familiar faces in municipal governments.

Sweeney, a former Gloucester County freeholder, noted that he combined that county’s vocational-technical and special services schools to save $1.3 million a year, and instituted a countywide police dispatch system in order to save money. He acknowledged, though, that the police dispatch initiative took eight years to implement and more work needs to be done. He also said he though it would be too soon for the shared-services proposals to be put to local voters this year.  

Kevin Roberts, a spokesman for Governor Chris Christie, said the Republican would consider Sweeney’s plan and judge it on the details, but also wanted the Democrat-controlled Legislature to pass more of Christie’s so-called tool kit bills also aimed at reducing property taxes.

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As reported by nj.com, days before the governor’s office and the state’s largest public employees union are scheduled to sit down for the first time, lawmakers are receiving letters warning of dire results that could come from changing employee benefits through law.

A letter, cosigned by 48 labor attorneys, claims that if lawmakers move forward on Governor Chris Christie’s plan to force employees to pay 30 percent of the health costs, it would eliminate any future ability to negotiate on the subject. It is the latest in a brewing war between Christie and the state’s public employee unions over their benefits and whether they should be changed through legislation. 

“We want decision makers in Trenton to understand that we have a well-established legal right to negotiate over health benefits,” said Bob Masters, political director for the Communication Workers of America, which represents the majority of the state’s unionized employees.

Christie argues that since previous state employees received increases in benefits through legislation, there is nothing stopping him from reducing benefits through the same route. “They ought not complain when they have received benefits legislatively in the past,” Christie spokesman Kevin Roberts said.

The letters come in advance of a Friday meeting between the administration and the CWA. It will be the first meeting to discuss contracts that expire in June. The meeting will not include Christie, his spokesman Kevin Roberts said, but will be conducted by a representative of the administration. In previous contract negotiations, discussions between the administration and the unions began months earlier.

Christie has said he does not intend for health benefits to be a topic of this year’s negotiations. While the last contract, negotiated by former Gov. Jon Corzine, increased the cost of health benefits for employees, Christie says he will seek larger contributions and get them through law, not bargaining. Christie and Senate President Stephen Sweeney each have legislative proposals that would make state employees pay more for health insurance.   

The unions argue that historically only the pension benefits have been changed via legislation and that Sweeney’s bill, or any similar proposal, would strip them of bargaining rights they have previously been entitled to.

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As reported by trentonian.com, New Jersey’s state government unions are up against more than a combative Governor Chris Christie going into contract negotiations. They are up against numbers regarding their salary, which were recently released and could complicate their efforts to rally public opinion to their side.

More than 17,000 union represented state employees have salaries of $75,000 or higher. They account for a record 75 percent of total employees in this pay range, including management and patronage employees. Union represented employees now hold 43 percent of jobs paying $100,000 or more, also a record proportion. These Civil Service figures are as of January 1, 2010.

The two biggest of a dozen state employee unions are the Communications Workers of America, representing about 37,000 employees, and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (“AFSCME”), bargaining for about 9,900 state workers. Governor Christie has declared himself ready, even eager, to do some hard-nosed negotiations. He served notice at a recent town meeting that unions should not expect him to join them in “holding hands” around the bargaining table and singing “Kumbaya.”

Union representatives have no such expectations. “We’re aware of the [fiscal] situation and public mood,” said one AFSCME member, not authorized to speak for the union and commenting anonymously. “We’re not looking for a sweetheart contract or expecting one. We’re looking for a fair contract, one that doesn’t shift all the burden onto us.”

CWA says it has made concessions previously, contrary to the impression given by the blustery Christie. These concessions included a deferral of a scheduled raise in 2009, the acceptance of a pay cut in the form of uncompensated furlough days, and an agreement to take on a bigger employee share of pension and medical-coverage costs. 

New Jersey’s contract talks open at a time when states face big annual budget shortfalls and massive unfunded long-term liabilities in promised pension and health benefits. New Jersey liabilities by one official calculation surpass $120 billion, four times the annual state budget. Other calculations set the sum even higher.

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, a Republican, has positioned himself in the center of America’s public sector labor battle zone. He’s proposing to sharply curtail bargaining parameters, including taking benefits off the table. He also proposed to stop payroll deductions for union dues, forcing the unions to collect their own dues, a potentially crippling blow to them financially. Christie has stopped short of going that far. But, he has drawn the national limelight, alongside Walker, with his union-taunting remarks and stated willingness to go to the mat.

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As reported by nj.com, leaders of police and firefighter unions slammed Governor Chris Christie at a rally outside the Statehouse on March 3, 2011. 

Bill Lavin, president of the New Jersey Firefighter’s Mutual Benevolent Association, said Christie loves police and firefighters, but hates the unions because “he hates your voice.” Lavin said the Governor wants to take away hard-earned benefits for police and firefighters, then deliver the eulogies at their funerals. In response to Christie calling the rally a “me-first rally” at a press conference, Lavin said he agrees with the Governor’s assessment of the event. “I agree with him,” he said. “Every time the bell rings, every time shots are fired, you people say, ‘me first, I go in first.’ ”

The rally was expected to draw a crowd of more than 8,000, but Lavin said he was told the crowd was in excess of 15,000.

The president of Lakewood PBA, Gary Przewoznik, said he was on his way to a PBA meeting to tell Lakewood officers that jobs had been saved through a compromise with the township when he got the call that Officer Christopher Matlosz had been shot. “The assassination of Chris Matlosz served as a reminder to all of us that our jobs are vital to our communities,” he said. “We are the good guys.”  

Christie blamed the unions for cuts in public safety, citing examples in Camden and Newark where unions could have made concessions to save jobs. The governor said it is the unions’ civil rights to protest. When asked what effect such rallies have on his decision-making, Christie said, “Zero. Absolutely Zero.”

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As reported by nj.com, leaders of New Jersey’s public workers unions said they will launch a full court press against a bill sponsored by Senate President Stephen Sweeney that would force public employees to pay more for their health care benefits. The unions have called the bill an attempt to throw out collective bargaining rights.

Hetty Rosenstein, state director for the Communication Workers of America, said her union would picket, extract pledges from lawmakers to oppose it and hold “lobby days” against the bill over the next several weeks. “It becomes illegal to negotiate anything different than what’s in that bill,” she said. “It preempts all collective bargaining.”

Bill Lavin, president of the state Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association, said police and firefighters will protest it at a Statehouse rally and press all 120 lawmakers. “It’s totally unacceptable. I think if that were to pass, it will guarantee that the Democrats will lose the majority,” he said. “We’re shocked that Steve Sweeney, who calls himself a Democrat, would act in this manner…He’s rolled over for the governor in every instance.”

The pushback comes as the legislation has gained bipartisan support in the state Senate, with Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth) signing on as a prime sponsor. Public employees pay 1.5 percent of their salaries towards their health benefits. Under Sweeney’s plan and a proposal by Governor Chris Christie, workers would pay a portion of their premiums instead and would have more plans to choose from.

Under Christie’s plan, public workers would pay 30 percent of their premiums within three years. Under Sweeney’s, they would pay a sliding scale based on income, with the highest earners eventually paying 30 percent. Christie’s plan would require current retirees to pay part of their premiums.

Beck said she still has reservations about parts of the bill. She agreed with Sweeney that employees should pay rates based on their income, but agreed with Christie that current retirees should pay part of their premiums. Christie spokesman Kevin Roberts said the governor’s office was not upset that Beck signed onto the Democratic proposal.

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As reported by nj.com, the President of the state’s largest teachers union accused Governor Chris Christie of trying to foment a civil war within the middle-class. “All of New Jersey’s middle-class is hurting, but this governor and his right-wing supporters are trying to start a middle-class civil war,” said New Jersey Education Association President Barbara Keshishian. As she spoke, thousands of public workers filled the street in front of the Statehouse, wearing ponchos and holding umbrellas to keep as dry as possible in the pouring rain. State Police estimated the crowd at 3,100.

The rally, organized by the state AFL-CIO, was both aimed at pushing back against benefit concessions demanded by Christie, and in support of Wisconsin public unions, who are fighting Governor Scott Walker’s attempt to roll back their collective bargaining rights.

In his budget address earlier this week, Christie said private sector workers “support the rich benefits of public employees.” He’s pushing for major givebacks from the workforce, including paying more towards their health premiums and downgrading future pension benefits.

Local union officials spoke one after another at today’s rally, each handing over checks to the Wisconsin AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Stephanie Bloomingdale, who told the crowd “our fight is your fight, and our fight is for the middle-class.” The featured speaker, national AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, compared Christie to Walker and other Republican governors, saying “they were not elected to dictate.” “They were elected to solve problems, not create conflict,” Trumka said.

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As reported by nj.com, Governor Chris Christie began a town hall push to press lawmakers to make state employees pay more for benefits or be blamed for scotching property tax relief. The first meeting took place on February 24, 2011 in West Deptford, the hometown of Senate President Stephen Sweeney.

Speaking to a receptive crowd, Christie said residents needed to pressure lawmakers to take his deal. “Here’s the deal I offered the Legislature: If they pass my reform, which is very simple-have employees pay 30 percent of their costs that would save us this year alone $300 million-I will take that $300 million and I will use it to double your property tax relief,” Christie said. He also stated, “The public employee unions will go crazy-they already are. They need to pass that reform…If they don’t, then you know they’re taking the side of the special interests over the side of the property taxpayers in the state.”

The Governor’s proposed budget fell just short of doubling the relief. He recommended allocating $458 million, an increase of 70 percent, or about $189.8 million, from last year. Property tax relief would double if Christie dedicates all $300 million he says could be saved by hiking the health insurance payments.   

The increase in property tax rebates would be for households making less than $75,000 a year or seniors and the disabled making less than $150,000 a year. Christie did not make those distinctions when talking to the crowd in West Deptford. 

Sweeney did not attend the town hall meeting. Under Sweeney’s proposals for benefit changes, the health contributions would be phased in over several years and would be based on an employee’s salary. Sweeney dismissed Christie’s comments. “It is nice that the governor took time out from his busy schedule of raising property taxes, underfunding education and pitting New Jersey residents against one another to visit somewhere that is actually in New Jersey,” his spokesman Chris Donnelly said. “Senate President Sweeney hopes he enjoyed his time in the great town of West Deptford.”

Assembly Democrat spokesman Tom Hester reiterated charges that Christie is encouraging class warfare by juxtaposing health cost increases against property tax relief. “The governor’s pitting of neighbor against neighbor-teachers against senior citizens, police officers against retirees, firefighters against the disabled-is abhorrent politics,” Hester said. “Senior and disabled citizens shouldn’t be pawns in this governor’s awful political theater.”

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As reported on trentonian.com, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie held fast to his national reputation for fiscal discipline amid the widespread financial crisis that has hit the United States, unveiling a $29.4 billion state budget that calls for heftier contributions from state workers for pension and health care benefits.

Christie proposes paying $500 million into the state’s severely underfunded pension system, the minimum required under a new state law to get the state to quit skipping its payments. But Christie says he’ll make the payment only if the Democratic Legislature agrees to reforms that require government workers to delay retirement and pay more. Union workers, a powerful Democratic constituency in a legislative election year, oppose the plan.

Christie’s carrot-and-stick budget plan also targets public workers’ health care. His plan calls for additional property tax credits to poor, disabled and senior households, but only if the Legislature significantly increases public workers’ health insurance contribution. Specifically, Christie wants legislation that would push one-third of the cost of health insurance onto state workers by 2014, up significantly from the 1.5 percent of their salary they pay now. Christie would apply the $323 million in savings to property tax relief for low-income, senior and disabled homeowners.

Unions plan to rally at the Statehouse on February 25, 2011 in support of public workers in Wisconsin, where protests have erupted over collective bargaining rights and public employees’ benefits are among the issues raising ire. In a speech at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, Christie urged elected officials to follow his example in addressing spending and debt, and big-ticket items such as pensions and other benefits. “It’s time to do the big things-the really big things,” he said.

In New Jersey, Democratic leaders in the Legislature complained that Christie, through his budget, pits one group of middle-class residents against another. However, the League of Municipalities, an association of municipal mayors, says it’s pleased Christie’s budget proposal holds the line on spending and aid to towns.

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As reported by nj.com, the largest state employee unions in New Jersey are organizing a rally at the Statehouse on February 25, 2011 to express support for workers rallying in Wisconsin. The Communication Workers of America, which represents most of the state’s employees, will participate in the rally and National AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka will address the crowd. The rally is organized by the AFL-CIO and supported by the Change to Win unions and the National Education Association.

“We are all Wisconsin public workers this week,” Hetty Rosenstein, CWA state director, said in a statement. “They’re trying to blame middle class workers for the financial mess that Wall Street caused. It’s more politics as usual and we’re ready to fight back.”

Wisconsin state employees have staged large rallies at the Madison capitol to protest a move by Governor Scott Walker to eliminate collective bargaining for most employees, except police officers and firefighters. Walker has said the changes are needed to balance the budget. The move would allow collective bargaining only for wages, but wages would be capped to growth equal to changes in the Consumer Price Index.

Governor Chris Christie has expressed support for Walker, saying he understands the need to make bold steps to balance a budget. Christie, who made national headlines fighting with the teachers union last year, will have his own time to do battle with the unions this year. Contracts for most of the state’s employees expire this year. Christie has said he looks forward to collective bargaining, saying he will be “vigorous and adversarial” during the process.

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As reported by nj.com, with contracts for 49,000 state workers due to expire this June, Governor Chris Christie has publicly proclaimed he wants no pay raises and expects state workers to fork over much more for health and pension benefits. Union leaders say they have had no meetings with the governor’s office and worry this does not bode well for getting a deal before the current contracts are up.

At stake in this year’s talks are two of Christie’s signature issues: health and pension reform for state employees. Christie has declared there will be no pay increases for state workers, recently making the commitment in an interview with Fox News. He also has made clear his expectations for cuts in employee benefits: increase pension contributions for all employees to 8.5 percent of salary, require state workers to pay 30 percent of their health care premiums, raise the retirement age, and eliminate cost of living adjustments for pension recipients.

David Cohen, head of employee relations, will negotiate for the governor’s office, Christie said. “If and when he needs me to come in from the bullpen to help, I’m prepared to do it,” Christie said. Union leaders say they were told no meetings would be scheduled until after the governor’s budget presentation on February 22. In past contract negotiations, discussions have begun the fall before.

The governor’s office has gotten tough in negotiations with toll collectors who officially bargain with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority. The talks began in anticipation of a move by Christie’s office to privatize the operations and eliminate publicly funded collectors. Franceline Ehret, head of the toll collectors union, said the talks have been unlike any in the 10 years she had headed the group. She said in the past, the Turnpike Authority was empowered to make decisions about contracts, but this year all decisions are being routed through Christie’s office. She said the administration wants $12 million to $14 million in concessions, not including health and pension benefits changes.   

If the administration and the state workers unions cannot reach an agreement in June, the employees are barred from striking, but could use tactics to slow work productivity. The Governor, as employer, could initiate punishment if rules are not followed. Christie could opt to keep benefits out of the collective bargaining process and instead change the health benefits and pensions through legislation. That’s an option he said he would consider, but stressed his administration will bargain in good faith.

As one can expect, the upcoming contract negotiations with the Christie administration will have an enormous impact on all New Jersey public employees, to include public safety officers, and their successor collective bargaining agreements. Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding the negotiations as they become available.

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As reported by nj.com, Democrats are pushing back against Gov. Chris Christie’s plan to privatize some state government functions by calling for a change in the state constitution to put a short leash on agencies that want to hire private firms.

Under a plan discussed in the Assembly State Government Committee, state and local government agencies would not be able to spend more than $250,000 on a contract with a private company for services government already provides, unless they can show it would save money without creating new fees or fare hikes, and will not reduce quality. Companies would have to give the employees the same pay and benefits as government workers with similar jobs. Unions would have a chance to review the agency’s cost estimates and propose their own cost-saving measures. Contractors would also have to offer available jobs and help to laid off public employees.

“I don’t believe (privatization) should be done just on the backs of union employees by taking livable wages and decimating them to minimum wage so the wealth flows up to the top again,” said Assembly State Government Committee Chairwoman Linda Stender. Christie spokesman Kevin Roberts called the resolution “bad legislation” that would “enshrine a special interest giveaway in the New Jersey Constitution.”   

A Christie administration task force last year recommended privatizing functions like health care for prison inmates, toll collections, state parks, highway rest stops and career centers for the unemployed. The task force estimated the state government could save $210 million through the changes. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority recently put out a request for proposals that calls for toll collectors to make $12 per hour, less than half what experienced employees now make. Democrats said they were trying to abuse and waste that occurred in the 1990s with the privatization of vehicle inspections and the installation of the E-ZPass toll system.

The Committee did not vote on the resolution to amend the constitution. But lawmakers have the power to put it on the ballot this fall without any action from the governor, if they get 24 of 40 votes in the Senate and 48 of 80 in the Assembly. Democrats hold 24 seats in the Senate; 47 in the Assembly. The resolution was opposed by business advocacy and championed by organized labor.

Union officials said the quality of services would decline under the private sector. “The bottom line is profit. Profit at all costs,” said Ray Stever, president of the New Jersey State Industrial Union Council. “Their point is to come in here and use our taxpayer dollars to line their pockets.” 

Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding any and all efforts to privatize government functions. It goes without saying that such an attempt will have a direct impact on public employees, to include New Jersey Public Safety Employees.

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As reported by nj.com on February 4, 2011, the effort to reform the State of New Jersey’s civil service system stalled as Governor Chris Christie conditionally vetoed a bill to overhaul the system and Democratic legislative leaders declared they will not agree to his proposed changes. 

Christie called the Democrats’ bill “tepid, ineffective and meaningless” and said it would not save property taxpayers’ money. “The Legislature has sent me special interest approved ‘reform’ that will do nothing to constrain property taxes,” said Christie in his veto message. “The time for real reform of civil service is overdue.”

The Governor proposed allowing the State’s 193 towns in the Civil Service system, rules that govern the hiring, promotion and firing of employees, to opt out of it through voter referendum. Democrats had balked at this, saying it would open the door to more political cronyism and nepotism. 

Senate President Stephen Sweeney said he was willing to compromise with the Governor after they passed the bill, but Christie “didn’t want to give an inch.” Sweeney said he will not put Christie’s conditional veto up for a vote in the Senate, and will not start from scratch on another civil service reform bill. “I’m not going to beg the governor to try to find reform. We’re equal branches of government,” he said. “This was the first time the governor was not willing to compromise on something. What he’s going to find out is when there’s no compromise, there’s no legislation.”

Changing the State’s Civil Service system is the biggest remaining piece of Christie’s proposed “tool kit” to help towns curtail property taxes. Starting this year, towns face a 2 percent limit on property tax increases. In addition to the 193 towns, most state workers and 20 of the State’s 21 counties are in the Civil Service system.

The Democrats said their bill was “real reform” because it allowed local leaders to move employees between departments and set up a task force to reduce the number of employee titles and give towns more flexibility in assigning work duties. In his veto, Christie struck language about creating the task force on civil service titles, saying it would add an unnecessary layer of bureaucracy.

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As reported by nj.com on January 13, 2011, Governor Chris Christie proposed significantly higher health insurance premiums for hundreds of thousands of public workers in New Jersey, saying overly generous benefits are threatening to bankrupt the system.

Christie told a town hall audience in Bergen County that state and local workers, teachers, police, and firefighters must begin paying more for their medical and dental benefits if the system is to remain afloat. The health benefits fund is $67 billion shy of meeting its eventual obligations.

Christie wants benefits changes that make the health insurance system more like the private sector or the federal government, with employees paying about one-third of the costs of whatever benefits plan they choose. The government picks up the other two-thirds. That would amount to a significant increase from the 1.5 percent of salary employees now pay. A teacher earning $60,000 now pays $900 a year toward a plan that costs $22,000, Christie said. Under his new proposal, that teacher would contribute $7,333 a year for an identical plan. The changes also could result in inferior benefits, as some workers would be forced to accept plans with higher deductibles and co-pays or limited choice of doctors, to keep down costs.

Christie said health benefits for current workers and retirees cost New Jersey taxpayers $4.3 billion a year and growing. He said the State cannot afford to have worker benefits eating a larger and larger portion of state, local and school budgets. The Governor also renewed his call for changes to the pension system which include: raising the retirement age to 65, from 62, rolling back a 9 percent pension increase granted a decade ago and requiring all workers to contribute 8.5 percent of their salaries toward retirement, a higher portion than all but police and firefighters pay now. He said adopting major changes to the pension system this year would cut the funds’ $34 billion unfunded liability in half in 30 years.

As one can see, Governor Christie’s looming healthcare proposals will have a significant impact on New Jersey public safety employees going forward. The contributions that members currently pay could become significantly higher, while the level of benefits they currently receive could drastically decrease. Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding the impending proposals.   

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As reported on November 23, 2010, New Jersey’s Democratic leaders announced they are offering compromise legislation to Republican Governor Chris Christie that would allow pay hikes for police and firefighters achieved through arbitration to exceed two (2) percent for a year, as long as they remain within two (2) percent over the period of a contract. Senate President Stephen Sweeney and Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver unveiled the proposal at the Statehouse and said it also calls for the cap to be removed after three years, the average length of police and firefighter contracts, to allow the State to gauge its effectiveness.

Shortly after, Gov. Christie, who wants a flat annual 2 percent cap for police and firefighters salary increases, described the legislation as “watered down” and threatened to veto any Democratic version of legislation designed to hold down property taxes if he decided it is not “real reform.” Christie has introduced a 33-bill “tool kit” to lower property taxes and the Democrats who control the Legislature are offering their own versions. Any compromises are expected to be worked out before legislators adjourn for the year-end holidays.

The Sweeney-Oliver legislation would require pay for longevity, length of service, salary increments and other similar compensation to be included in the 2 percent cap. It would also require all contracts that expire in the three-year window to adhere to the cap, to prevent the purposeful stalling of contract negotiations. The proposal would also change the process for selecting an arbitrator for interest arbitration and change the process by which judgments are appealed.

Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain any updates regarding any and all legislation pertaining to police and firefighters.

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As reported in the Star Ledger on October 26, 2010, Governor Chris Christie joined with the Democratic Essex County Executive, Joe DiVincenzo, to stop a legislative effort to water down his proposal to cap public employee raises.

Democratic lawmakers were trying to pass a bill that would have allowed exceptions to Christie’s proposal for a so-called “hard cap” on salary increases in public worker contracts. The bill, introduced last week, was not only opposed by Christie, but DiVincenzo and some mayors as well. The Assembly had been scheduled to vote on the bill, but the bill was forced to be tabled after a determination that key support from Democratic members was lost. Therefore, an announcement was made that the bill was being shelved after a frenzied week of lobbying by DiVincenzo and others aligned with the Governor.

Speaker Sheila Oliver and Senate President Stephen Sweeney summoned reporters to a news conference last Thursday to announce their proposal to reform the rules governing salary arbitration for public worker unions. In short, arbitration is a process that allows an “independent referee” to decide salaries when government entities cannot work out their differences with labor unions like those that represent police and firefighters.

The Oliver-Sweeney bill called for arbitrators to, among other things, take into account new statutory caps on property tax hikes and the economic climate of the region. However, it did not include a “hard cap” on pay raises which Christie and DiVincenzo are pushing.

Christie spokesman Michael Drewniak repeated the governor’s support for a tough salary cap and issued another call for the Legislature to pass the tax-control measures proposed by Christie as part of his “tool kit” agenda. “A hard cap would bring meaningful collective bargaining reform and is essential to finally control property taxes for every New Jersey homeowner,” Drewniak said. “Gov. Christie urges the Legislature to fulfill the commitment it made when it passed the 2 percent property tax cap and enact real arbitration reform and the other necessary tool kit bills without further delay.”

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As reported in the Trentonian on October 19, 2010, New Jersey lawmakers failed to reach an agreement with the Governor’s office over how to ensure that police and firefighters’ raises are based on economic conditions in the towns where they work without trampling on their right to negotiate contracts.

Governor Chris Christie has been pushing for a 2 percent cap on annual salary and benefits increases for police and firefighters to help municipalities budget within a 2 percent cap that goes into effect January 1, 2010. Many mayors support the cap on arbitration awards, but police and firefighter unions are bitterly opposed. Unions indicate annual increases in health care costs would more than eat up the 2 percent increase.

Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Lou Greenwald emerged after about two hours in the office of the Governor’s counsel saying talks were continuing. “We’re going to talk throughout the night,” Greenwald said. “I think we had a productive conversation. I do not think we’re far away in our baseline numbers.”

Christie, a Republican, has made arbitration reform a centerpiece of his property tax stabilization efforts. He’s also identified changes in affordable housing rules, eliminating some state-imposed costs to towns and allowing towns to opt out of civil service rules for hiring workers as key components of his agenda.

Since police and firefighters are prohibited from striking, their contract disputes are settled by an arbitrator. Towns have been complaining that the process favors public workers. They say contract awards greater than 2 percent will force them to cut services elsewhere, unless changes are made.

Greenwald’s bill would require an arbitrator to resolve contractual impasses by selecting among “fair and final” offers submitted by each party in the dispute. It would also change the way arbitrators are selected. A competing bill, by Republican Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon of Monmouth County, mirrors the Governor’s proposal for a 2 percent cap on salary and benefits increases, and prohibits either side from proposing more.

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As reported in the Trentonian on October 15, 2010, a battle is brewing at the Statehouse over whether to cap salary increases for public employees who cannot strike. Various mayors want arbitration-awarded salary and benefits increases for police and firefighters capped at 2 percent to help them control property taxes, but union officials say the ceiling would mean wage givebacks once health care costs are factored in.

The bill is part of Governor Christie’s reform agenda and includes making the arbitration process more favorable to municipalities. The Governor signed a law limiting property tax increases to 2 percent a year beginning in January. Many mayors called the bill the “centerpiece” of Governor’s Christie’s plan. Without it, they say they will have to cut services to lower costs because a large portion of the 2 percent increase get eaten up by salaries for police and firefighters.

Unions have responded by indicating the arbitration process works and that without it, police would be taking an annual pay cut. Anthony Wieters, president of the 30,000 member State Policemen’s Benevolent Association, told lawmakers that binding arbitration, whereby an independent arbitrator settles contract disputes involving police and firefighters who are not allowed to strike, has been demonized by misconceptions. For example, he said arbitrators are already required to consider a town’s ability to pay before deciding public employees’ wage increases. Wieters also indicated that mayors were eager to “scapegoat arbitration as the boogeyman of property taxes.”

Bill Lavin, president of the Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association, also testified, calling the cap artificial and politics-driven. “Firefighters and police officers have continued to responsibly negotiate in good economies and bad. They’ve accepted wage freezes and have reorganized active contracts to give relief to municipal governments,” he said. ‘Many local fire unions have, in fact, agreed to multiple-year wage freezes.” 

Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain the status of this bill’s progression. Needless to say, such a bill would have a severe and detrimental impact upon New Jersey public safety officers throughout the State of New Jersey.

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On May 20, 2010, a New Jersey judge ruled that a new law requiring public employees to pay at least 1.5 percent of their salaries toward health insurance can go into effect on May 21, 2010.

As reported in the Asbury Park Press, unions for police and firefighters asked the Superior Court for a temporary restraining order that would have kept the law from taking effect in certain situations. The request was part of a larger lawsuit that seeks to block the new law, which is part of the State’s efforts to hold down costs by being tougher on public employees and their unions, including those working for local government.

The new law, championed by Governor Chris Christie, requires the contributions of employees once their current collective bargaining agreements expire. Many public employees already contribute at least 1.5 percent of their salaries to health coverage. Other locals have chosen smaller pay raises to keep free health care, or have switched to inferior insurance coverage to keep it free. 

The unions’ main contention was that the amount employees pay for their health insurance should be worked out in contract negotiations, not imposed by the State. According to the judge, “not every term and condition on which a collective bargaining unit would want to negotiate is fair play.” The judge also rejected the unions’ arguments that the law amounts to an unfair tax on the State’s roughly 400,000 public employees or that the law is vague.

The unions will get another chance to make their case in court later. While the unions ultimately hope to stop the law from being enforced entirely, the main concern in this case was narrow. Police and firefighters are prohibited by state law from going on strike. When their contract negotiations reach an impasse, they go to a lengthy arbitration process. In essence, the unions argued the 1.5 percent payment requirement should not apply to the 215 local unions currently in the arbitration process.

Please continue to check this blog periodically for updates regarding this litigation. 

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As reported by various media outlets, Governor Chris Christie announced a 33-bill legislative package on May 10, 2010 that plans to place stricter limits on property tax increases and a put a permanent 2.5 percent limit on annual raises for public workers.

Christie also discussed several potential reforms, including raising the retirement age to 65 from 62; having public employees pay more toward their pensions and allowing towns to discard some civil service rules.

Union leaders have criticized many of the proposals, doubting that they will save much money. They also fear that allowing towns to opt-out of civil service will open the system to more hiring decisions based on patronage.

The proposed legislation includes: (1) a constitutional 2.5 percent cap on the annual increases in municipal, school, and county property tax levies; (2) a 2.5 percent limit on the annual increases of public employee contracts, including wages, health benefits, vacation time, and other perks; (3) limiting the amount of unused sick time that current employees can cash out at $15,000; and (4) allowing towns to opt-out of the civil service system through an ordinance or a petition by 15 percent of the voters.

These new legislative proposals have the potential to impact every public employee in the State of New Jersey. Specifically, the proposal regarding the 2.5 percent limit on the annual increases of public employee contracts, which would affect all public employees, seems to usurp the purpose behind the collective bargaining process and the concept of organized labor. As such, this legislation must be followed closely by all New Jersey Public Safety Officers. Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding this legislation and its ultimate progression.

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As reported in the Trentonian on March 12, 2010, Governor Chris Christie is looking privatize State jobs. Yesterday, Governor Christie created a task force to look at ways to privatize State jobs to save money as he tries to find a plug for a projected $11 billion budget deficit for the 2011 fiscal year.

Christie signed an executive order creating the five-person group to look at “every aspect of the way government does business.” He said privatization could narrow the scope of public services provided by the State’s nearly 75,000 workers and increase efficiency. Christie also stated that he would have ordered the audit even if New Jersey was not in dire economic need. Privatizing jobs would inevitably mean layoffs for State workers, but Christie said he had not asked the task force to come back with a specific level of savings.     

The creation of the task force comes just days after the new Republican Governor said he was wrong to think he could alter a deal Governor Corzine made with State workers that allowed them to keep pay raises and take furloughs in exchange for a no-layoff pledge. Democrats estimate that for every 1,000 workers laid off, the State would realize $30 million to $40 million in savings. However, according to Bob Master, spokesman for the Communications Workers of America District 1, privatization is a “failed tactic from the past that’s based on an ideological hostility to government.” Specifically, he indicated, “you get a real deterioration of services and you don’t save any money.” 

Governor Christie’s potential privatization could have an enormous impact upon New Jersey Public Safety Officers. As such, please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding privatization and the workers it will affect.

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