Posts tagged Phil Murphy
Rutgers president won’t rule out legal action to block strike
April 12, 2023 // Rutgers University President Jonathan Holloway won’t rule out the possibility of legal action to block the ongoing strike from Rutgers University’s faculty unions. In a Monday evening email addressed to “Members of the Rutgers Community,” Holloway said that the university “will have no choice but to take legal action” if “there is no movement towards an agreement.” Gov. Phil Murphy personally intervened earlier to delay Rutgers from taking legal action to block the three unions from their ongoing strike. Holloway also alleged in the Monday evening email that protestors entered and disrupted a class where there was a “critical exam” that was underway. A university spokesperson did not respond to questions for more details on the incident.
Laufenberg sentenced for stealing union funds
November 18, 2022 // George R. Laufenberg, a former commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, admitted in June that he had stolen pension fund and made false statements to the U.S. Department of Labor. U.S. District Court Judge Kevin McNulty also imposed a $20,000 fine on the former labor leader. Federal prosecutors said that Laufenberg took the funds under a deferred compensation agreement that he was not entitled to. He was the administrative manager of the pension fund. The Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters fired Laufenberg in 2016. In 2018, they also terminated John Ballantyne, the former secretary-treasurer of the union and a political ally of Gov. Phil Murphy. Ballantyne alleged that he was forced out after emerging as a critic of Laufenberg.
N.J. public worker premium hikes, Murphy deal with unions will cost taxpayers. Leaders are baffled.
October 18, 2022 // Murphy, a Democrat, did strike a deal with several state worker unions to mitigate their costs, enraging local leaders and unions representing town and county workers who warn of higher property taxes and layoffs. In the end, New Jersey taxpayers will shoulder the lion’s share of the rise in costs, but exactly how much remains a mystery. The Murphy administration hasn’t provided an exact amount and did not answer questions from legislative officials during budget negotiations.
This fresh blow to newspapers — and our democracy — must be stopped | Editorial
October 4, 2022 // For nearly two centuries, and across the country, the job has been done by contractors who are not classified as employees of the newspapers. But now the state Department of Labor is strictly enforcing a law that’s been on the books since the FDR era, upending tradition by ordering these workers to be treated as employees. That means newspapers, or the firms they hire to handle delivery, would have to pay taxes to cover benefits like unemployment and disability, just as they do for full-time employees. It would cost the Star-Ledger, already diminished by layoffs and buyouts, about $3 million a year. The state’s intentions are good, even if its swing is a bit wild. This is part of a movement, mostly in progressive states, to combat the spread of abuses related to contract work. It was inspired first by the growing use of lower-paid contract workers on constructions sites, many of them working full-time and standing shoulder to shoulder with regular employees. And contract work has exploded in the gig economy, at companies like Uber and Grubhub.
Rising insurance rates hammer New Jersey workers
September 21, 2022 // In less than a week’s time, the State Health Benefits Commission shot up rate increases of 21% for health plans of state workers, and almost 23% on local government benefits. More than 800,000 workers are impacted, and there was a lightning rod last-minute deal involving unions and Gov. Phil Murphy – much to the detest of Republicans.
First NJ Starbucks to unionize goes on strike for benefits, better pay
August 10, 2022 //
Unions: Freeze contributions, use Covid relief funds to offset proposed hikes in public workers’ health care premiums
August 8, 2022 // Some of the state’s top union leaders are requesting that public employees’ health care contributions be frozen at current levels and that federal Covid relief funds be used to help offset proposed rate increases for those workers’ health insurance. In a letter to Gov. Phil Murphy obtained by POLITICO, the leaders of the New Jersey State AFL-CIO, Communications Workers of America, New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association and other public employee unions say the steep proposed rate increases to the State Health Benefits Program would “cause a financial crisis for New Jersey workers, the public and State and local governments.” State Health Benefits Program, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, Christi Peace, Division of Pensions & Benefits, Jennifer Sciortino, New Jersey Association of Counties and the state League of Municipalities,
Jousting with management? Medieval Times cast may join NJ’s growing unionized workforce Friday
July 15, 2022 // On Friday afternoon, 42 workers at the Bergen County dinner theater will decide whether to join the American Guild of Variety Artists, which represents performers including the Rockettes and the members of Cirque du Soleil. The vote follows a national wave of collective organizing and an uptick in unionization rates in New Jersey. Food service workers, retail employees, even budtenders in the medical and recreational cannabis markets are getting organized. Medieval Times employees said the union will represent the knights, squires, trumpeters and other performers. It would represent the stable hands, who care for the horses, as well. Servers and food staff would not be included in the bargaining unit. New Jersey Medieval Times, Zaire Wood, May report by the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations, Susanne Doris,
Amazon Hub in Newark Is Canceled After Unions and Local Groups Object
July 11, 2022 // “Unfortunately, the Port Authority and Amazon have been unable to reach an agreement on final lease terms and mutually concluded that further negotiations will not resolve the outstanding issues,” Huntley Lawrence, the Port Authority’s chief operating officer, said in a statement on Thursday. Advocacy groups and unions involved had said they could not support the lease unless Amazon made a set of concessions that included labor agreements and a zero-emissions benchmark at the facility. Make the Road New Jersey, Kim Gaddy, South Ward Environmental Alliance, Ms. Cullinane, Ms. Gaddy, airport cargo center,
Offshore wind boosted as Biden, East Coast governors team up
June 24, 2022 // A national agreement signed with North America’s Building Trades Unions covers contractors working on those projects and future ones, with no termination date on the project labor agreement. It sets the terms and conditions for union workers to build offshore wind farms, with targets to ensure a diverse workforce. It contains provisions for training to ensure they can construct the complex infrastructure, which costs billions of dollars. Vineyard Wind, South Fork Wind, David Hayes, Diane Hoskins, Heather Zichal, American Clean Power Association,