Make the Road NJ Hails New Jersey’s Guaranteed Severance Pay Law, S-3162 Signed Into Law Yesterday

Elizabeth, New Jersey (January 11, 2023) – Juliet Meneses, member leader from Make the Road NJ, issued the following statement on behalf of Make the Road New Jersey in response to New Jersey’s Guaranteed Severance law S-3162, signed yesterday by Governor Phil Murphy. The law implements the first in the nation 2020 Guaranteed Severance Pay Law that provides support and protections to local workers facing mass layoffs. The original bill was signed into law in January 2020 and scheduled to take effect in July 2020, but enforcement has been delayed since then due to COVID emergency protocols. With the governor’s signature today, the worker protections outlined in the Guaranteed Severance Pay Law will automatically take effect in 90 days.

“Reactivating New Jersey’s historic Guaranteed Severance Pay Law yesterday is a tremendous victory for working families  who will be protected if our employers close our facilities, downsize significantly, or file for bankruptcy. This first in the nation law sends a message that workers cannot be left behind when big corporations like Toys R Us or Sears go bankrupt. For years, families like mine have to bear economic distress, struggling to make ends meet when big corporations close their doors while their executives get millions of dollars. Now, with this new law, we will have a safety net when our employers shut their workplace down. We applaud sponsors Senator Joseph Cryan,  Senator Fred Madden, Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, Assemblyman Reginal W. Atkins, and Governor Murphy for prioritizing working families.”

###

Make the Road New Jersey is an advocacy organization that builds the power of immigrant, working-class & Latinx communities to achieve dignity and respect through community organizing, legal, policy innovation and transformative education.