Senate of Pennsylvania

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: KALISHA DEVAN

PHONE: (717) 787-7112

EMAIL: kdevan@pasenate.com

National Employment Continues to Climb, Dangerous Job Decline in Pennsylvania

Still no job creation plan in sight from Corbett Administration

HARRISBURG, August 17, 2012 – – Senate Democratic Leaders today said the latest state employment figures are the predictable result of the Corbett administration’s failure to support a job growth plan.

 

According to the state Department of Labor and Industry, Pennsylvania lost 3,100 jobs in July. Combined with 2,800 lost jobs in June, it puts Pennsylvania below its December 2011 employment level.

 

This net loss of 3,600 jobs stands in sharp contrast to the national employment outlook, which has been increasingly positive with more than 1 million new jobs created since the beginning of the year. Senate Democrats say this contrast illustrates the complete lack of leadership by Gov. Tom Corbett and his administration on job creation, the most important issue facing Pennsylvania.

 

“The new job numbers aren’t surprising considering that the Corbett administration has no plan for job creation outside gas drilling counties,” said Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione, Democratic Chair of the Labor and Industry Committee and Caucus Secretary. “There are still nearly a half million Pennsylvanians out of work and if you don’t have a gas well in your back yard, you’re on your own. Job creation across the entire state should be a priority.”

 

Tartaglione said recent cuts to job training programs and layoffs of state unemployment office workers indicate that the administration is more concerned with cutting jobs than creating them.

 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Pennsylvania ranks 42^nd among all states in net new job creation, below a majority of our neighboring states. Pennsylvania ranked 36^th just a month ago.

 

“Today’s jobs report continues to underscore the total stagnation of economic growth in Pennsylvania,” said state Sen. Vincent Hughes, Democratic chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “It also illustrates Gov. Corbett’s failure to push a job creation plan and invest in Pennsylvania’s workforce and infrastructure. We are losing our footing nationally and our unemployed workers are bearing the brunt of this lack of leadership on job creation.”

 

Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) said that Since Governor Corbett gave his first budget address in March of 2011, our state’s economic performance has been in a steady decline.

 

“We are still on the wrong track when it comes to job creation. These latest job numbers are clear evidence of that,” said Sen. Jay Costa, Democratic Leader. “While national job growth continues its steady ascent, Pennsylvania employment is in decline and unemployment has reached a nine month high. We must focus on jobs and growth and put a stop to this downward slide.”

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Senate Democratic leaders say that without serious attention to job creation, we are risking real damage to our economy in Pennsylvania and allowing the state’s working families to fall behind the national recovery.

 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics, national employment has increased by more than 1.8 million jobs since last July. This growth rate is roughly equal to the pace of growth between 2003 and 2007 as the state emerged from a previous recession. In fact, the past year’s increase of 1.838 million jobs is the third highest annual increase in the past decade, helping to add 4 million new jobs since employment increases began in 2010.

 

Unfortunately, Pennsylvania’s jobs report tells a very different story. Growth of only 20,000 jobs over the past year is far below our economic performance during that same 2003 to 2007 time period. This poor performance is even more startling when compared to robust job growth in more recent times. Pennsylvania initially emerged from the recent deep recession among the strongest positions of all 50 states. Net job growth between February 2010 and February 2011, topped 107,000 new jobs and ranked us 7^th among all 50 states.

 

“It is both shocking and disappointing to see the sharp contrast between Pennsylvania and the rest of the nation,” Hughes said. “It is imperative that we refocus our priorities and boost our job-creation efforts with real, proven solutions. We are at a critical moment, it is my hope that the Governor sees these numbers for what they are – a very loud cry for help from Pennsylvania’s unemployed.

 

The Democratic Caucus has continuously made job creation and economic development a top budget priority.

 

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From Pete Matthews, President AFSCME District Council 33 –

(Sent to Philadelphia City Council and Phila area State Reps, State Senate, Congressional Leaders and Senator Casey) –

To City Council President Darrell Clarke

City Hall, Room 405

Philadelphia, Pa 19107-3290

Dear Council President Clarke,

I am enclosing with this letter a fact sheet for your review that details the more than substantial savings for Mayor Michael Nutter’s Philadelphia City Budget that AFSCME District Council 33 has helped to generate over the last four and a half years.

Please note that Mayor Michael Nutter has saved at least $415 million thanks to the support provided by District Council 33 through our foregoing of pay raises and health benefit contribution increases over the last (4) years. Also we have cooperated with the Nutter Administration in shrinking the City’s workforce by reassigning members to funded positions and avoiding layoffs. We lobby and work very hard in providing decisive political support for the City in Mayor Nutter’s effort to win legislative approval from the Pa. General Assembly to raise new revenue through an increase in the City’s Sales Tax.

I would like to note that the Mayor has not once contested the fact that our union is responsible for those savings. He has chosen instead to completely ignore this reality. With all of this cost saving, cooperation and political support Mayor Nutter still refuses to settle a fair contract with District Council 33.

We want each of you to know that Mayor Michael Nutter, a Democrat, has been deliberately creating a poisonous atmosphere with District Council 33 and all of the City’s unions, and his actions may have negative political and electoral consequences in the coming November General Election.

This is why we would like for you to tell Mayor Nutter to do the right thing and settle a fair contract with District Council 33 a contract that recognizes the contributions we have already made!

Sincerely,

Pete Matthews, President AFSCME District Council 33

From Pete Matthews, President AFSCME District Council 33

(Sent to Philadelphia City Council and Phila area State Reps, State Senate, Congressional Leaders and Senator Casey)

For the last four years District Council 33 has delivered for the City.

When Mayor Nutter asked for help with workforce adjustments in 2009 District Council 33 delivered
b
y showing him how to avoid laying off 200 City workers by moving them to funded positions. This saved the City $35 million.

District Council 33 unilaterally changed its Health and Welfare Fund from fully insured to self insured two year before the City did for non-represented city employees, assuming greater risks in order to maintain health benefits. The City has not increased health benefit contributions for four years. District Councils 33and 47 combined have saved the City $84 million.

District Councils 33 and 47 members have not received a pay increase in four years. That has saved the City $61 million.

When the City needed legislative approval from the Legislature in Harrisburg to defer payments to the Pension Plan District Council 33 stepped up and delivered. That saved the City $235 million.

When the City needed approval from the Legislature in Harrisburg to raise the Sales Tax to generate new revenue District Council 33 stepped up and delivered again. To date the Sales Tax increase has generated more than $100 million.

Add it up. $415 million in savings and $100 million (and counting) in new revenue.

How has Nutter (or his spokesman) responded?

“You can’t save what you never had.”

Really?

When Mayor Ed Rendell forced $200 million in concessions in 1992 he bragged about how much he saved.

Since Nutter took office, his five-year budget projections have assumed employee costs would remain essentially flat regardless of inflation.

That means any basic wage increases would have to be offset by savings – reduced overtime, for instance, or use of furloughs to pare expenses.

Nutter has suspended yearly step raises for employees in their first five years on the payroll, along with longevity increases, paid to veteran workers for every five years’ service. In terms of the pension savings, Mark McDonald, Nutter’s spokesman, said they were deferred payments, which would ultimately need to be paid back and represented no savings at all.
Really?
The City saved $235 million that it didn’t have to pay out over the last four years and somehow that is NOT savings?
Nutter has not personally attended even one negotiations session.
Here is what Nutter says:
“The challenge here is every time we have a conversation, they want to talk about what they don’t want to do, and not what needs to be done.”
“Everyone has to be part of the shared sacrifice.”

Our Conclusion?

This shows Mayor Nutter’s lack of leadership.

Mayor Michael Nutter is the most anti-union mayor in Philadelphia’s history.

He would rather dictate than negotiate a Fair Contract.

Remember, this is still a Democracy

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