WEC Staff, Author at Work Environment Council

Mold Concerns in Our Schools

In another example of the severe facility conditions confronting many New Jersey public school districts, the Monroe Township public school district in Gloucester County has closed all district schools because of mold contamination concerns. Students, parents, staff, and community members are concerned about the health and safety implications of mold contamination. To learn more about how mold impacts school, student, and staff health and safety, please read Unite for a Mold-Free School factsheet. If you have any concerns around school facility issues, including but not limited to mold, please reach out to Healthy Schools Now campaign organizer Jerell Blakeley at jblakeley@njwec.org. Healthy Schools Now

By WEC Staff|2017-10-13T14:44:24-04:00October 13th, 2017|Highlights|Comments Off

Will NJ be a hub or bust for wind turbines?

The landmark 2010 Offshore Wind Economic Development Act should have made New Jersey a national leader in offshore wind. Yet, for seven years, little action has been taken to capitalize on this opportunity for creating family-sustaining jobs, increasing clean energy production, and stimulating economic development. Governor Christie, much like the Trump Administration has stalled, and rolled back progress on climate policy. It’s rare to find such broad consensus on policy issues, but on August 16, several dozen leaders gathered under the shadow of massive wind turbines at the Atlantic City Utilities Authority to demand New Jersey take action on offshore wind. The United Steelworkers District Director joined the Offshore Wind Business Network executive director as well as labor, faith, environmental and community organizations gathered to discuss offshore wind as a foundational strategy in the fight for more clean energy jobs and less greenhouse gas emissions. Read the full Opinion-Editorial in the Star-Ledger by John Shinn, Director of District 4, United Steelworkers and WEC Board Member and Dan Fatton, executive director, WEC.

By WEC Staff|2017-10-13T14:44:33-04:00October 10th, 2017|Highlights, Opinion Pieces|Comments Off

Sink or Swim? Time for Serious Action On Climate In NJ

The latest hurricane disasters are yet another wake-up call. Climate change is happening and causing sea-level rise, worsening storm surges, increasing air temperatures that lead to more rainfall, and boosting water temperatures — all of which make storms more severe. July 2017 was the hottest month ever measured on earth, raising the temperature (up to 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than average) of the Gulf of Mexico, and making Harvey wetter and stronger, jumping to a Category 4 hurricane just hours before making landfall — an unprecedented event in decades of record keeping. Millions of people have been affected. People are in need of shelter and services, and just as we saw after Superstorm Sandy, damaged facilities are spewing toxic materials into communities, and public health is at risk. Recognizing the urgency of the climate crisis, more than 50 organizations formed Jersey Renews; labor unions, faith leaders, community and environmental organizations are standing in solidarity and urging action. Climate change poses a massive threat to our coastal state, yet we believe that strong actions to counter it also offer an opportunity to prepare New Jersey for the future. Read the full Opinion-Editorial in NJ Spotlight by Dan Fatton, executive director for the New Jersey Work Environment Council. October 3, 2017 [...]

By WEC Staff|2017-10-03T11:34:26-04:00October 3rd, 2017|Highlights, Opinion Pieces|Comments Off

2017 WEC Awards Dinner

The New Jersey Work Environment Council holds its major fundraiser, an awards dinner, each year. We look forward to being joined by labor, environmental, community leaders and public officials, representing many thousands of New Jersey workers and residents. The event will be held on Thursday, November 30, 2017 at The College of New Jersey, 2000 Pennington Road, Ewing, in the Education Building, Room 212. Enjoy hors d'oeuvres, beer, wine, and a buffet dinner, with ample time provided to network and mingle with friends. WEC relies on the generosity of our members to help fund our mission: working for safe, secure jobs and a healthy, sustainable environment. download the invitation and order form. Buy tickets 2017 HONOREES Valorie Caffee worked as WEC’s director of organizing for 13 years; she launched WEC’s Environmental Justice program, helping raise awareness about and support for this critical issue by making presentations at community and union meetings, meetings of other environmental organizations, faith-based organizations, conferences, schools, and workshops around the state and in other states as well. This work led to Valorie being appointed as chair of the Environmental Justice Advisory Council to the NJ Department of Environmental Protection, a position she held from 2002 to 2016, and her [...]

By WEC Staff|2017-10-23T13:57:25-04:00September 22nd, 2017|Events, Highlights|Comments Off

2017 Honorees

WEC is pleased and honored to recognize eight outstanding leaders at our 2017 Awards Dinner. Valorie Caffee, Executive Committee, NJ Environmental Justice Alliance Valorie Caffee worked as WEC’s director of organizing for 13 years, ending her service with the organization in 2009. While employed by WEC, she launched WEC’s Environmental Justice program. Along with WEC colleague Theodore Carrington, she helped raise awareness about and support for this critical issue by making presentations at community and union meetings, meetings of other environmental organizations, faith-based organizations, conferences schools, and workshops around the state and in other states as well. This work led to Valorie being appointed as chair of the Environmental Justice Advisory Council to the NJ Department of Environmental Protection, a position she held from 2002 to 2016, and her co-founding of the NJ Environmental Justice Alliance, NJEJA. She was also appointed as co-chair of Gov-elect Corzine’s Environmental Policy Transition Team. During her tenure with WEC, significant strides were made for environmental justice, including the issuance of New Jersey’s first environmental justice executive order, passage of legislation to reduce the emission of diesel exhaust from school buses and other public buses to decrease the incidence of asthma and other pollution-related ailments; support by WEC for local EJ [...]

By WEC Staff|2017-10-04T12:10:13-04:00September 22nd, 2017|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Christie spent big on Statehouse’s ‘shameful’ health, safety conditions. Why not schools?

Christie was decisive in finding $300 million to address emergency conditions at the Statehouse. However, the very conditions the governor decried in the Statehouse exist in public schools across New Jersey. Unfortunately, his approach to addressing similar, or worse, emergency conditions in Schools Development Authority (SDA) public schools has been woefully inadequate. Under Abbott v. Burke V, the state is required to fund all capital projects fully, and improvements in the SDA districts (formerly known as Abbott districts) to make buildings safe, relieve overcrowding, and ensure educational adequacy. By law, SDA districts can not fund facility improvements over $500,000. While it is true the Christie administration has committed significant funds to rebuild schools in Trenton, Camden and other districts, the commitments followed years of inaction and is greatly dwarfed by the need. To not decisively address emergent conditions in SDA districts would be -- as Christie says -- shameful and an embarrassment to the people of the state, impacting the health and safety of the people who study, work, visit and have business in schools. Read the full Opinion-Editorial in The Star Ledger by Jerell Blakeley, campaign organizer for the New Jersey Work Environment Council and John McEntee, President of the [...]

By WEC Staff|2017-09-13T08:57:49-04:00September 13th, 2017|Highlights, Opinion Pieces|Comments Off

HSN at NJ Black Issues Convention Conference!

On Thursday, September 28, from 11:00am - 12:15pm, Jerell Blakeley, campaign organizer for Healthy Schools Now, will chair a panel titled ‘Healthy Schools Now: What You Can Learn From the Battle at Trenton High’ at the NJ Black Issues Convention’s “Still We Rise: Moving NJ’s Black Agenda Forward” conference being at the Masonic Temple in Trenton, New Jersey. The panel will explore the intense struggle to replace the unsafe and unhealthy Trenton Central High School with a new state-of-the-art school facility and provide strategies for other communities interested in replacing dangerous school facilities. Panelists will include former Trenton Board of Education President Dr. Diane Campbell, Trenton Education Association President Naomi Johnson-Lafleur, and New Jersey Assemblyman Reed Gusciora. If you are interested in attending, please use this link to register.

By WEC Staff|2017-09-28T08:29:30-04:00September 12th, 2017|Highlights|Comments Off

HSN Student Leadership Academy

The Healthy Schools Now Student Leadership Academy will provide an opportunity for students to receive training in civic engagement and to develop leadership skills. The focus will be to equip students to be advocates for school facility quality, but the lessons will be transferable, so that participants will be better equipped to advocate on social, economic, and environmental justice issues in the future. Breakfast and lunch will be provided for each session. Transportation costs will be reimbursable. Using the subject of healthy and safe school facilities as the general theme, over the course of one year, we will provide eight trainings on topics as diverse as public health, healthy and safety training, effective advocacy, communications and media training. We are looking for students from the pilot districts who are interested in a unique leadership development opportunity. We want to transform students into exceptional leaders empowered to create solutions for healthier communities. Deadline to apply is Friday, September 22! Apply Today! Healthy Schools Now

By WEC Staff|2017-09-08T09:50:27-04:00September 8th, 2017|Highlights|Comments Off

Training Opportunities

WEC offers quality, interactive training using a participatory methodology that encourages problem-solving and critical thinking to address important health and safety issues in the workplace. WEC invites you to participate in two programs in September. Reduce Injury and Illness and Improve Workplace Health Training Program Thursday, September 21 8:30 AM - 1:00 PM (8:00 AM Registration) Registration Fee: FREE Location: Foundation for Educational Advancement 12 Centre Drive Monroe, NJ Register Every employer should have an overall injury and illness prevention program. Prevention programs improve health and safety conditions for both large and small employers, reduce workplace injuries and illnesses, improve compliance with laws and regulations, and reduce workers’ compensation premiums. This interactive workshop will include: An introduction to OSHA and key aspects of an effective Injury and Illness Prevention Program. An introduction to the concept of using the proactive Systems of Safety approach to identify and control hazards. Guest speaker from the American Heart Association’s Workplace Health Solutions -- a free, evidenced-based workplace health program that can help improve productivity, morale and positively impact the bottom line.* Violence Prevention Training Program Tuesday, September 26 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM (8:30 AM Registration) Registration [...]

By WEC Staff|2017-09-12T15:55:32-04:00August 29th, 2017|Highlights|Comments Off

State Rejects 95% of Emergent Repairs in SDA School Buildings

After taking nearly a year to review 429 applications for so-called "emergent" (urgently needed) facilities repairs submitted by 23 former Abbott districts, the NJ Department of Education (NJDOE) has approved state funding for only 15, or 5%, of the repairs. Education Law Center and the Healthy Schools Now (HSN) coalition of the NJ Work Environment Council are calling on State Education Commissioner Kimberly Harrington to publicly explain why so many of the repair projects were denied. ELC and HSN also note that, even for the 15 projects given the go-ahead, the NJDOE has yet to provide any timeframe for undertaking and completing the repairs. In July 2016, the NJDOE and the Schools Development Authority (SDA) asked the former Abbott districts, now called "SDA districts," to submit requests for emergency health and safety repair projects under an initiative called the "Potential Emergent Projects Program" (PEPP). In response, the districts submitted extensive lists of needed repairs and hazardous conditions for State review. An emergent project is a capital project necessary to address a building condition that causes imminent peril to the health and safety of students and staff, and that must be alleviated on an expedited basis. Under a 1998 NJ Supreme [...]

By WEC Staff|2017-08-21T22:38:32-04:00August 22nd, 2017|Highlights, Press Releases|Comments Off

WEC Staff

About WEC Staff