CWA Condemns N.J. Politicians' Attack on Middle-Class Families

CWA state workers in New Jersey are the latest targets of legislative attacks on workers, as state Senate President Steve Sweeney attempts to strip away their right to bargain over health care.

On Thursday CWA President Larry Cohen issued this statement:

“From Wisconsin to Ohio and now New Jersey, there are those who are dead-set on blaming the middle class for the economic downturn and attacking public workers. We knew that Governor Chris Christie – who has for months refused to follow the law and engage in real negotiations with state workers -- was already on the anti-working families bandwagon.

“We are shocked and saddened that some Democrats like Sen. Steve Sweeney are choosing to stand by his side. The Democratic Party has always stood up for the rights and standard of living of working people. That is the job that New Jerseyans sent their Democratic senators to Trenton to do.

“Sen. Sweeney has abandoned those core values and opted to join a senseless Republican attack on the middle class. Not only would Sen. Sweeney’s plan cost hardworking New Jersey families thousands of dollars a year in new health care costs, it would deny state workers their legal and moral collective bargaining rights.

“By joining a nationwide wave of anti-worker legislation, Sen. Sweeney has made this a national issue. Labor and progressive leaders across the country will stand together to fight back against the Sweeney-Christie plan. New Jersey is now a national battleground in the fight to defend the middle-class.”