Justice to push for pay raises for state workers

Gov. Jim Justice says he’ll advocate for a 5% pay raise for state employees and educators who are experiencing increased insurance costs.

“I’m absolutely going to put forward another 5% pay raise,” Justice said during a news briefing today in response to a question by reporter Charles Young of West Virginia News. “It should more than offset any raises in PEIA, and we need to do that. We need to accomplish that. Without any question that’s what I’m going to do.

“I hope that will just sail right through because at the end of the day we want people to not be hurt by these increases. The increases are really and truly difficult to avoid, but we can offset with pay raises to where we’ll be putting at least as much money in somebody’s pocket as the increase is going to cost and in most all cases we’re putting more money in their pockets.”

The Public Employees Insurance Agency believes a 10% premium increase for state workers and educators is necessary to meet expenses this year. The finance board is expected to take a final vote on the plan in December.

That’s on top of a 24% increase for the current year — changes that have gone hand-in-hand following legislation mandating that the insurance plans snap back to an 80-20 cost split between the government employer and insured employees.

The PEIA Finance Board received public comment Monday in Wheeling and Tuesday in Martinsburg. Still ahead are sessions at 6 p.m. today in Morgantown, this coming Monday in Charleston, in Bluefield next Tuesday and a virtual public hearing next Wednesday.

The state Democratic Party today issued a news release calling out the governor on his 2021 promise that PEIA premiums would not go up on my watch. Period.”

Democratic Party chairman Mike Pushkin, who is also a delegate, said that changed when Justice signed legislation mandating a return to the 80-20 share between the employer and workers.

“He even said that a meteor would have to strike the earth in order for him to sign a bill raising premiums on our state workers. I must have missed when the meteor hit because he signed it. The Legislature pushed it and he signed it, and now people are starting to see they’re getting paid less,” Pushkin said today on “The Dave Allen Show” on 580 WCHS Radio.

Pushkin contended the state could experience continued challenges recruiting and retaining workers for essential roles.

“When you go into a job in the public sector, often you’re told the pay’s not great,” Pushkin said. “You know why you’re told that? Because the pay’s not great, but the benefits made up for it. Now they don’t.

“The benefits are not that great and the pay’s not that great, and then we wonder why we have a shortage of teachers in this state. We wonder why we can’t find people to work for child protective services taking care of the most vulnerable in our society. We wonder why we can’t find correctional officers in our prisoners. It’s because we continue to treat them like this.”

Delegate Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, acknowledged she doesn’t have all the answers about PEIA’s financing balance. But she worried about workers getting hit in the pocketbook.

“I’m incredibly worried about people having to pay 30% more over the next three years,” Young said on “The Dave Allen Show.”

“In terms of people having to pay way more for their insurance, I’m also concerned about utility bills going up. Going to the grocery store isn’t easy for anyone right now; it’s expensive.”

West Virginia Education Association President Dale Lee has been traveling to the public hearings around the state and addressing the issue of the premium increase.

“People just can’t afford this continued increase in these premiums,” Lee said today on MetroNews’ “Talkline.”