Today, New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech and Secretary-Treasurer Laurel Brennan were honored to testify in support of Kevin Jarvis, the Acting Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, and Mary Cruz the Acting Chair and CEO of the New Jersey Civil Service Commission at a hearing before the New Jersey Senate Judiciary Committee. Mr. Jarvis received unanimous bipartisan support from the committee and now his nomination moves before the full Senate.

Nominated by Governor Sherrill in January 2026, Mr. Jarvis has been serving as the Acting Labor Commissioner since late February, bringing his extensive experience in public service, labor law, managing worker advocacy and education programs, as well as the development of labor policy to the role. He has served as Legislative Director for the New Jersey State AFL-CIO, Chief of Staff to former Labor Commissioner David Socolow and a labor side attorney in private practice. Since February, Acting Commissioner Jarvis has strongly enforced the state’s wage and hour laws, while working to advance labor policy in our state.

Mary Cruz, is also a longtime friend of organized labor that previously worked for our union brother Congressman Donald Norcross. She began her career working for the late Congressman John Adler. She also served within our labor movement as a labor leader for one of the largest healthcare unions in the nation, 1199SEIU, and as Director of the New Jersey Healthcare Workers Alliance. Throughout her career, she has worked to ensure that working people are treated with dignity and respect. Ms. Cruz’s nomination was also unanimously approved with bipartisan support and now moves before the full Senate.

The New Jersey State AFL-CIO is proud to support Kevin Jarvis and Mary Cruz, who will continue to make progress to ensure safe work environments, protect workers' rights, and support economic development. Governor Sherrill made two excellent choices in nominating these leaders, and we thank the senators that voted today in favor of them. We sincerely look forward to working with both of these leaders to continue to advance labor policy in our state.