Assemblywoman Annette Quijano (D-Union) on Thursday joined Speaker Vincent Prieto and other members of the Assembly in urging Gov. Chris Christie to protect workers who will be affected by state action regarding Atlantic City:
“Speaker Prieto should be applauded for understanding that the current crisis in Atlantic City is rooted in regional competition from surrounding states and is not caused by workers who are struggling to earn a living-wage. The Governor should not be using this dire situation to pursue his ideological agenda to erode the hard-earned rights of workers.
“There are significant structural problems facing Atlantic City, and he should be focused on addressing these issues – not blaming the hard-working men and women who are the backbone of the region’s economy. We cannot make the rights of working people a casualty in this process.
“Furthermore, the state needs to negotiate in good faith if there are going to be real solutions for solving Atlantic City’s fiscal problems. Speaker Prieto repeatedly has said that he is willing to compromise and work with local representatives of the city to ensure that they are an equal partner in these negotiations. The Governor should be following his example.”