This Bill extends TDI to provide family leave benefits for workers caring for sick family members, new born and newly adopted children.
On January 28, 2007 the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee heard testimony on the controversial Family Leave Bill (S786). Commissioner Sokolof was on hand to testify, as were a number of supporters (including CWA and other Union) and opposition representatives. Sokolof testified that in comparison to the State of California, which has similar legislation, only about 1% of the workforce uses the benefit. The NJ DOL has based their research on that pattern using the same theory and suggests that the same percentage of NJ employees would use the benefit.
The business community continued to maintain that it was the small business that would be impacted and forced to “Move out of NJ”. One individual caused a raise from the committee chair by suggesting that the committee was a “Kangaroo Court” in an effort to try to defeat the Bill after which his comments were addressed by the committee chair and co-sponsor.
For more information, please visit the State of New Jersey website:
http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bills/BillView.asp
State Holds DDD Direct Care Staff Personally Accountable If 911 Is Not Called in a Medical Emergency
Local 1040 President Carolyn C. Wade wants all members involved in Direct Care of the developmentally disabled to be aware that the State is actively enforcing Danielle’s Law. Under this little-known law, all workers who care for the developmentally disabled are required to call 911 in the event of a life-threatening medical emergency. Failure to do so will result in a stiff fine against the worker as an individual.
President Wade told Viewpoint, “Our members need to know that this
supersedes any contractual, departmental, divisional or institutional regulation or law. It doesn’t matter what is in the patient’s best interest. It doesn’t matter if you are a doctor or a nurse. The Direct Care worker must first call 911. Then the obligations stops. I cannot stress that enough.
All Direct Care workers should understand that this law personalizes responsibility to them as individuals. This supersedes any contractual protections. The individual will have to hire a lawyer at his or her own expense and, if convicted, will have to pay a fine. The fine for the first time is $5,000. This increases to $10,000 for a second occurrence, and $25,000 for a third. And the individual’s professional license may be revoked. Again, I cannot stress enough the importance of picking up the phone and dialing 911 in any situation that might be considered a medical emergency.”
The State has already held training sessions for State workers in DDD about what constitutes a “life-threatening medical emergency.” The State will not conduct this training for Direct Care workers in the private sector (not-for-profit or profit facilities). Instead, the employers in these facilities are responsible for providing training for their employees.
Workers Already Targeted
On August 24, President Wade and Local 1040 Executive Vice President Donald L. Klein were called to the office of Donald Mangus, Director of Human Services, Office of Employee Relations. Kevin McGovern, from the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations was also present at the meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to notify Wade and Klein that four unnamed persons would be charged as individuals with violating Danielle’s Law, but without any administrative charges being filed. (At press time, Local 1040 had learned that only three individuals have actually been prosecuted.)
“If this was a real concern,” Klein told Viewpoint, “why aren’t they issuing administrative charges? In a State developmental center, this policy just doesn’t make sense. Doctors and nurses, for example, are used to taking action—not calling 911. But if they are present when a serious incident occurs, they cannot help save a life unless they dial 911 first.” Klein added, “Evidently, DDD has potentially 90 individuals who are in jeopardy of being charged. We don’t know at this time if any Local 1040 members in private facilities are affected. These are caregivers who were trying to save a life. Now they may have to pay a steep price. We can’t stress enough: if the situation is even remotely life-threatening, call 911 first. Then do what you can until the responders arrive on the scene.”
What Is Danielle’s Law?
Danielle’s Law is named for Danielle Gruskowski, a developmentally disabled woman living in a group home, who one night developed a high fever and difficulty breathing. She was taken to a doctor’s office in the morning but could not be revived.
In October 2003, Governor James McGreevey signed Danielle’s Law. Like many laws created under extremely emotional circumstances, this one was well intentioned but not well thought out. As a result, any Direct Care worker—including physicians and nurses, at both public and private facilities—working with the developmentally disabled or those with traumatic brain injury must call 911 in situations that are considered life-threatening. The law itself does not specify what “life-threatening” entails. The penalties are severe and are directed to the individual Direct Care worker, regardless of contractual, departmental, divisional or institutional regulation.
