1199SEIU caregivers from New Vista Nursing and Rehab Center in Newark rallied in front of their facility to demand a fair contract for workers. Workers from New Vista and other nursing homes joined local community members and their supporters to demand a fair contract from management.

Dozens of caregivers gathered in front of the nursing home today at 2:00pm in Newark to join their fellow caregivers and concerned community members who came out to support their fight for better wages and affordable healthcare benefits.

New Vista employees are currently in a contract dispute with management who is proposing immediate wage freezes for the next year and reductions to workers’ paid time off. Management is also proposing to reduce starting rates for new workers, and is refusing to increase contributions to the employee health insurance fund needed in order for workers to maintain their existing healthcare benefits.

“All we are asking for is decent wage increases and to keep our health benefits, “said Haneef Russell who has worked as a dietary aid at New Vista for six (6) years. “It’s not much, it’s just what we need to keep up. The cost of everything is going up—gas, food, everything. And our paychecks are staying the same.”

Caregivers at New Vista are part of a coordinated bargaining unit involving fourteen (14) long-term care facilities throughout the state, all of which are currently in a contract dispute. Wednesday’s action was part of a wider campaign that is targeting some of the facilities with informational pickets intended to inform New Jersey residents and public officials about the need to secure decent contracts for workers in order to improve standards and maintain quality residential care in the state’s nursing homes.

“This is about respect for the care these dedicated workers provide to some of our communities’ most vulnerable members,” said Milly Silva 1199 SEIU Executive Vice President in New Jersey. “It’s time they get what they need to provide for their own families at the same time they care for so many others.”

New Vista workers are asking for a minimal annual wage increase and for the preservation of existing health and retirement benefits, so that they can continue to provide for their own families at the same time they care for the families of those in the community.