For Immediate Release:
February 7, 2017
Harrisburg – In response to Governor Tom Wolf’s yearly budget address, the SEIU Pennsylvania State Council issued the following statement:
“Tom Wolf has always been a different kind of governor, and today he faced Pennsylvania’s looming budget deficit head on. He outlined an innovative way to protect two years of investments for schools, human services, and seniors while also protecting the workers who provide services to our commonwealth’s most vulnerable populations.
“Despite the significant challenges to our state’s finances, Governor Wolf still stands ready to fight for working families. We commend the governor for embracing a path to a $15 minimum wage, for fighting back against Republican attacks on health care while making bigger investments to fight the opioid crisis, and for holding corporations with bottomless pockets accountable for Pennsylvania’s rigged economy. SEIU members stand ready to fight alongside the governor on all these fronts.
“Pennsylvania is at a crossroads. Under Governor Wolf, the state has made significant strides forward – investing in $640 million in education, addressing the opioid epidemic, and expanding Medicaid to 700,000 Pennsylvanians. Now we face a choice. We can address our budget deficit by following Governor Wolf’s innovative approach, or return to the budget-slashing days of the Corbett administration. We hope that legislative Republicans choose the right path forward.”
The following statement is attributable to Gabe Morgan, President of the SEIU PA State Council and Vice President of SEIU Local 32BJ, Tom Herman, Secretary-Treasurer of the SEIU PA State Council and President of SEIU Local 668, Matt Yarnell, President of SEIU Health Care Pennsylvania, and David Melman, Manager of the Joint Board of Workers United.
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Contact: Reesa Kossoff, 717.232.1270