NJEA official says public salaries, benefits have been unfairly blamed for N.J.'s poor financial condition
Senate President Stephen Sweeney unveiled a plan that aims to slash the state's huge medical costs by requiring public employees to kick in significantly more to health benefits.TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie Tuesday called a public employee health benefit reform plan unveiled by Senate President Stephen Sweeney a "good start" while union leaders said it interferes with the collective bargaining process and balances the budget on the backs of middle-class workers.
Meanwhile, Assembly Speaker Shelia Oliver offered a lukewarm response to the Sweeney proposal, saying in a statement, "the Assembly can embrace many of the elements to protect taxpayers in this proposal, but as in all things the Assembly will give it its own review."
Under the Sweeney bill unveiled at the Statehouse, all of the state’s 510,000 public employees would be required to kick in significantly more money for medical benefits. The increases would be phased in over seven years for current employees and would be applied on a sliding scale depending on their salary.
"My plan is real simple: public employees will pay more," said Sweeney. Taxpayers last year paid more than $4 billion for public employee health benefits.
Christie has asked for similar increases, but has not proposed having those with lower salaries pay less. Christie said he was encouraged by the proposal, but added "it doesn’t go nearly far enough." He would not say whether he could support a sliding scale, but signaled he is eager to discuss the bill.
Steve Baker, a spokesman with the New Jersey Education Association, said the bill shows misguided priorities.
"We live in a state where last year we gave a $1 billion tax cut to the wealthiest residents and that was deemed critically important, but time and time again the state has come to working class and middle class workers and said you have to give more," Baker said.
Baker said public salaries and benefits have been unfairly blamed for the state’s poor financial condition, noting that workers have continually made their contributions to their pensions while the state ignored its responsibility.
The Communication Workers of America of New Jersey and other labor unions representing state employees are about to enter difficult negotiations with Christie. Hetty Rosenstein, state CWA director, said any legislative effort that affects public benefits "undermines the collective bargaining process."
"Sweeney’s proposals don’t address the fundamental issue of rising health care costs, choosing instead to merely shift the cost onto working people without negotiation," Rosenstein said.
Sweeney said he expects his plan to upset public workers, as it did when he pushed for similar reform in 2006.
"Then, the system was in a freefall and was collapsing. Five years later, we are much worse off," said Sweeney.
New Jersey State League of Municipalities President Charles Chiarello applauded Sweeney’s announcement, saying health care costs take up a big chunk of local budgets.
Under Sweeney’s plan, current retirees, most of whom pay nothing for their medical benefits, would not be subject to the increase. Like Christie, Sweeney wants a multi-tiered plan where workers can pay less for less coverage.