Quote:

+1

Sad that other municipal employees need to be furloughed and laid off so Police and Fire can get increases and other benefits. There is no shared sacrifice here. The cops whine and Healy caves.

Until the costs of salaries, overtime, and benefits (insurance, pensions) is addressed in regards to the fire and police departments, Jersey City will remain fiscally unsound.

NEW GREAT DEPRESSION, did not stop 85% tax burden to Residents!
NEW GREAT DEPRESSION, did not stop 40% increase in sewer charges!
NEW GREAT DEPRESSION, did not stop giving pay increases to CERTAIN Employees!
NEW GREAT DEPRESSION, did not stop creating a position for Mr. LIPSKI!

How come Mayor, the County produced a budget on time with mere $8-$15 tax increase and no layoffs during this NEW GREAT DEPRESSION?!

Gosh... how long this Mayor will be singing the New Great Depression song to cover his leadership failure??!

Is it just me or is Healy the only one who uses the term "The New Great Depression"? I've heard "The Great Recession" but no one with any knowledge of economics is calling what we are in right now a depression. There are definitely people suffering but there are also a lot of people doing quite well - and the economy is growing, so technically we aren't even in a recession.

Here's a thought - roll the JCIA into the DPW, the way your consultant suggested and you'd save $10 million a year. More than enough to cover the 90 people who were laid off between the two waves. Rather than always pointing to things outside of your control, Mr. Mayor, be a leader. Make the tough decisions that are within your grasp rather than blame "tough times". The complete absence of leadership in city government right now is breathtaking. If Rosemary McFadden gets hit by a bus before July 2013, God help us all.

Another 40 municipal employees are laid off in Jersey City

Published: Friday, July 01, 2011, 3:00 AM
By The Jersey Journal

The City of Jersey City carried out a second round of employee layoffs yesterday, with roughly 40 persons in administration being shown the door.

The first set of layoffs occurred June 6, when a total of roughly 50 employees in the departments of Public Works, Housing Economic Development and Commerce, Recreation, and two civilian employees in the Police Department received pink slips.

Some 16 employees are slated be laid off from the Department of Health and Senior Services on Aug. 16, officials said.

?Jersey City, like many other cities around the state and the nation, have suffered greatly from the New Great Depression and severe cuts in state aid, specifically $40 million in direct cuts in aid to Jersey City this year alone,? Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy said in a statement.

?As a result, we have had to make tough decisions like imposing 24 mandatory furlough days and laying off civilian employees.

?This is one of the hardest decisions any mayor has to make, but due to the severity of the times we are in and the loss of revenue, we had to downsize government and streamline services in order to keep taxes stable and provide some relief to the taxpayer,? he added.