NAMI NEW JERSEY
ADVOCACY NETWORK
ALERT
January
26,2001
Contact: Phillip Lubitz (732) 940-0991
NAMI SUPPORT REQUIRED FOR DIRECT CARE
WORKERS SALARY UPGRADE
Governor Whitman in her
budget address on January 24th proposed several new mental health initiatives
for which NAMI NEW JERSEY has been strongly advocating. The proposed 2002
budget which will begin on July 1, 2001 calls for funds to build a new
state of the art hospital on the grounds of Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital
and 22 million dollars in bridge funds to develop additional community mental
health programs. NAMI NEW JERSEY will be taking an active advocacy role
as the 2002 budget process unfolds.
Salary upgrades for
direct care workers will be going to the Joint Budget Oversight Committee
immediately. The Governor
has proposed a salary upgrade of one dollar an hour or approximately 2000
dollars a year to direct care workers, some of whom are currently earning less
than twenty thousand dollars a year. NAMI NEW JERSEY has been strongly
advocating for a salary upgrade in order to halt the constant staff turnover at
our community agencies that has such a deleterious effect on the continuity of
care for persons with a serious mental illness. The Joint Budget
Oversight Committee is about to take up the salary upgrade that would take
affect as soon as it passes through the legislature.
IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED
NAMI NEW JERSEY Advocates and
their friends need to contact the members of the Joint Budget Oversight
Committee (listed below) and let them know how important it is that the direct
care workers employed in our community agencies receive the proposed salary
upgrade. Circulate this Alert with others in order to generate the
largest response possible.
Points
to include in your letter:
Urge the committee members to
raise the quality of living for caregivers, and in turn for the people they
assist. A commitment must be made to make this a priority .
It would be beneficial to add a personal story about how direct care staff are
valuable in the lives of people with mental illness.
Joint Budget Oversight
Committee
Bagger,
Richard H. - Co-Chair, Assemblyman
,
Republican, 22, Appropriations Chair
203 Elm St., Westfield, NJ 07090 (908)-232-3673
Inverso,
Peter A. Senator ,
Republican, 14, Assistant Majority
Leader
3691A Nottingham Way, Hamilton Square, NJ 08690
(609)-586-1330
Kenny,
Bernard F. Senator ,
Democrat, 33, Assistant Minority Leader
235 Hudson St., Suite 1, Hoboken, NJ 07030
(201)-653-1466
Lance,
Leonard, Assemblyman ,
Republican, 23, Budget Chair
119 Main St., Flemington, NJ 08822 (908)-788-6900
Littell,
Robert E. - Co-Chair, Senator,
Republican, 24
P.O. Box 328, Franklin, NJ 07416 (973)-827-2900
Albio Sires, Assemblyman,
Democrat, 33
6709 Park Ave., Guttenberg, NJ 07093 201-854-0900
NAMI
NEW JERSEY: http://naminj.nami.org/naminj/