Says Furlong, “The public service and the programmes they deliver had been decimated by years of cuts by previous governments. If I have a complaint, it’s that government has not gone far enough. The Auditor General has repeatedly talked about the caseloads of groups such as social workers. Less than 200 jobs created per year is hardly excessive.”
Furlong continued, “When you consider the massive cuts over the previous decade, government is simply putting back what was taken out. This is about improving public services.”
Furlong lashed out at the St. John’s Board of Trade, stating: “The Board of Trade has no credibility on this issue. High employment levels and good-paying jobs help our economy and local businesses to prosper. The Board of Trade opposes increases to the minimum wage, public sector jobs, and public sector salary increases. It seems they want no services for the people of the province, and what services are left they expect to be provided by minimum wage employees.”
Furlong concluded by saying, “We agree with the Minister of Finance. The spending is worth it.”
For further information, contact:
Judy Snow, NAPE Communications
Phone (709) 570-2502 or 1-800-563-4442
Mobile (709) 687-8551
Home (709) 726-3129
E-mail: jsnow@nape.nf.ca
Recent Comments