A-4330

Sponsored by: Assemblyman WAYNE P. DEANGELO District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

STATEMENT

This bill will permit a State agency, in its discretion, to appoint on a temporary basis a worker who, in the agency’s judgment, may be needed to perform routine maintenance work in a State building or facility when the work is not required to be performed under a contract or agreement awarded after being publicly advertised and publicly bid. “Maintenance work” is defined in the bill to mean the repair of an existing facility when the size, type, or extent of such a facility is not thereby changed or increased, or any work on a maintenance-related project that exceeds the scope of work and capabilities of then-employed maintenance personnel.

This authority to appoint can only be used by a State agency to appoint a worker who is a skilled craftsman from an area building trade and who has completed an apprenticeship program, when the performance of that routine maintenance work requires such a skilled craftsman. The appointment can only be used for the performance of specified work during a specified period of time. The appointed worker will be terminated upon completion of the specified work.

The appointed worker must sign an employment agreement, and the maintenance work will be performed by the worker under the direct supervision of the State agency.

The State agency will determine the qualifications, duties, and compensation of the worker, and appoint and remove the worker, all without regard to the provisions of Title 11A (Civil Service) of the New Jersey Statutes. The appointed worker will not be subject in any manner to the provisions of the civil service laws and regulations.

The appointed worker will receive payment for services on a per diem basis, which would include commensurate payments toward any retirement, health care, or other benefits plan or program available to the worker as a result of the worker’s membership in a union.

During the period of the appointment, the worker will be considered an employee of the State agency, but will not be eligible for enrollment in a retirement system or program, health care benefits plan or program, or any other benefit plan or program available to State employees, including but not limited to a plan or program for disability or workers’ compensation, unless eligibility or enrollment is required by federal law or regulation. The worker will be indemnified and provided any defense of any action provided for in the same manner and to the same extent as employees of the State under the “New Jersey Tort Claims Act,” on account of acts or omissions in the scope of the worker’s authority.