Throughout their respective careers in the legislature, Senator Sweeney, Assemblyman Burzichelli, and Assemblywoman Riley have introduced and seen enacted a number of bills intended to protect New Jersey’s working men and women.
- One of Senator Sweeney’s most significant achievements has been the passage of the New Jersey Paid Family Leave Law, which extended the state’s Temporary Disability Insurance system to provide paid leave to workers who must offer care to sick or dying relatives or to a newborn or adopted child. This program is self-funded, not requiring any state dollars for payment of benefits.
- Legislation introduced by Senator Sweeney in January 2012 would increase the state’s minimum wage to $8.50 per hour from its current rate of $7.25. The measure would directly impact the roughly 40,000 New Jerseyans who earn the minimum wage.
- Senator Sweeney and Assemblywoman Riley sponsored measures to help bridge the gender pay equity gap and fight discrimination in the workplace. The package of bills is intended to deter further discrimination and demand equal pay for women. The bills were approved by the Legislature in June and are currently awaiting the Governor’s consideration.
- Putting New Jersey in front of a growing issue regarding personal privacy on social media networks, Assemblyman Burzichelli and Senator Sweeney crafted legislation that would prohibit an employer from requiring a current or prospective employee to provide or disclose any user name, password, or other means for accessing a personal account or service.
- Senator Sweeney is working on legislation that provides surviving spouses of certain fire and police personnel who die in line of duty with workers’ compensation for their entire period of survivorship.
