By Jessica Bruder, The New York Times
TRENTON, N.J. - State law enforcement officers rallied in Trenton on Monday for a new contract that would include 12 percent annual pay raises and continued out-of-network medical benefits. As part of the protest, more than 1,000 corrections officers called in sick to attend the rally, according to state and labor officials.
The 6,811-member union that represents New Jersey’s corrections and parole officers and park rangers has been without a contract since July 2003. The union is seeking a wage increase of 12 percent a year for the four years of the contract, and continued health care from providers of their own choosing included in the wage package. The Associated Press estimated that 3,000 people took part in the two-hour rally, which was held in front of the State House.
“The problem is it’s been over a year now without a contract,” said Troy Ferus, the president and bargaining agent for Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 200, which represents the officers. He called the union’s demands reasonable, noting, “We’re in the most expensive place in the country.”
But Micah Rasmussen, a spokesman for Gov. James E. McGreevey, said the union’s wage proposal was “obviously very difficult and not something that’s going to happen.”
Mr. Rasmussen said that the state had provided the officers with an out-of-network health plan, but that it had become too costly. The state has asked the officers to pay 25 percent of the health plan’s premium - the rate paid by other state employees - or choose a less expensive in-network plan.
“Unfortunately, the cost of the traditional plan has increased dramatically,” Mr. Rasmussen said, “and it just was not feasible from a taxpayer’s perspective to keep paying 100 percent of that plan.”
Mr. Ferus said the union did not call for the sick-out by corrections officers. “We can’t tell anyone to call in sick, because it’s illegal,” he said. Still, he added, “I’m sure they’re going to charge my officers for taking an illegal sick day.”