About Me

My photo
Nazareth, Pa., United States

Thursday, April 14, 2022

Zrinski's Hypocrisy

As I mentioned yesterday, Tara Zrinski is one of three Democrats seeking her party's nod in the race for a newly created state senate district. She ran for State Rep two years ago, and managed to lose to a candidate who failed to even mount a campaign. Now, fresh on the heels of a County Council victory, she's running again. She's running so often that she's become the Mark Pinsley of Northampton County. But I want you to know that she claims to support a $15 minimum wage. She calls herself a "working class champion." This should be news to many county workers. 

Her campaign website states, and in boldface so you can't miss it, that "Tara believes in a $15 minimum wage because no one working 40 hours a week should live in poverty."  Unless you work for Northampton County. Clerks in the Civil Division start at about $14 an hour. There are numerous other positions well below $15 an hour. The night watchman does not even make $13 an hour. Custodians, some of the hardest workers in the county, start at a miserly $11.18. Dietary aides at Gracedale are given a pittance of $13.38.

These folks rely on food stamps to get by, or have second jobs.  They work 40 hours a week and are living in poverty. Zrinski has spoken up for none of them. Instead, she has voted No to raises in the elections office and No to a retroactive payraise for probation officers.  

She can piously pronounce that she supports a $15 minimum wage, but in the one place where she can actually do something to effect change and improve the lives of the county workforce, she's been silent.

Actions speak louder than words.  

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Bernie. This person has done more harm to the Lehigh Valley Democrats than she realized. She Has worked to mechanize the college educated, white middle age progressive women into a voting bloc that excludes many men especially white men. While that may benefit, her in a primary it is a disaster for a general election.

She is one of the major problems with the democrat party.

I am aware of good solid democrats, both men and women who will not support her divisive campaign. It is bad enough she is a self-centered narcissist, but she has weakened Northampton County democrats for her own benefit. She has sold out the trade unions with the goofy faux environmental platform that has gone nowhere. She blows off county meetings and even ducked out of the important votes for pay studies and Gracedale. She is unreliable at best.

It is unfortunate so many good dems have been turned off are discarded for her woke agenda. She may very well win in th primary but will be soundly defeated n th general. The Harrisburg republican powers have more than enough on her to ensure a republican win in the fall.

Anonymous said...

Thrush is printed above

Anonymous said...

I have been saying this all along! She cares nothing for the citizens of this county, it's just a stepping stone for her to get to the state house!

Now that you posted this and exposed her hypocrisy she'll be throwing McClure under the bus in in 3 2 1.......

Anonymous said...

Which begs the question that should be asked of her, "As a Council member, have you proposed pay raises for every County employee, in order for the minimum pay for any employee to be $15/hr?"

Of course, she'll be required to do some work if she should make such a proposal as an election stunt.

Like, being able to give the figures on how such a blanket raise will effect the budget and the tax increase needed to cover the higher payroll. Then, there is the added problem of the wages for those starting at $14 wanting more than $15, than those starting at $11.00. Being there is a $3 difference currently, those $14/hr employees would expect $18 to maintain that $3 in a higher starting wage. The resulting tax increase would be a hard sell to the public.

Anonymous said...

Amen Bernie. Zrinski is a fake fraud and phony only out for personal gain. A big mouth rabble rouser at best. A disgrace to unions.

Anonymous said...

I hope the Miller kid sends this out on a mailer. I don't think people realize just how extreme this Zrinski is. 9:18AM is correct. Fake phony fraud is a perfect description.

SteveM said...

I think you might be ignoring an apples vs oranges comparison. Are these public service employee's covered under a union contract - protected from being fired unless they do somethings really bad? Do they get health benefits, extra days paid off and larger vacation packages. Do they get pensions, educational benefits, bereavement leave, maternity/paternity leave ? Unless I'm mistaken a $14 an hour civil employee would certainly turn down even a $18 hr job is he/she had to give up all those additional benefits.

Anonymous said...

All the questions are appropriately asked of the candidate. She should give her answer. If she is proposing a $15.00 minimum wage, why hasn't she led by example? She should propose the minimum wage for the County employees. She has control over that legislation. If I'm not mistaken, don't we have four R's and 5 D's on council? If nothing else, she would learn a valuable lesson. DO YOUR HOMEWORK. She has no idea what a minimum wage increase would cost. She has no idea how many employees are affected. Then again, she really doesn't give a shit about Northampton county. Only her residence is in the district that she is a candidate and a few out lying districts, the rest of the County is divided between Boscola and Scavello. She can rant about issues on the state level all she wants but only one itsy bitsy part of Northampton County can vote for her. I'm going to write in your name Bernie.

Anonymous said...

She is nutty

Bernie O'Hare said...

SteveM, it makes bill difference whether a public or private sector worker is involved. They have the same bills. I see how it hurts every day.

Bernie O'Hare said...

3:43, it would cost very little to make sure all FT workers get paidd $15 an hour. There would be a significant cost to raising the salaries of everyone else. It needs to be done and can be done gradually as real estate tax revenue increases.there should be no more if balancing budgets on the backs of county workers

Bernie O'Hare said...

3:43, do not vote for me. Lol

Anonymous said...

Re Bernie at 5:51. First requirement would be a reassessment of the entire county.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Lol, I doubt you could get five votes for that, as badly as it's needed. It is very unpopular with voters. Jerry Seyfried and Don Cunningham were able to pull it off with a minimum of pushback, but it was tough even on them.

Anonymous said...

3:43 i suggest you look at that map the 40th district is gone from Northampton county

Anonymous said...

Agreed. Zrinski claims she is so about helping the downtrodden. Once heard saying she is the voice of the unrepresented and minorities. WOW

Why is she not helping the female prisoners in the county? The local news outlets have all reported on the reported sexual abuse of female prisoners in the county pen by employees. So where is her voice for the unrepresented? And women at that.

This is another county coverup and she is just another political pawn of the power elite.

Anonymous said...

Bernie at 11:02. Check the assessment of M10 4 3. $17500. Then look at the property. Then check M10 2 9. Assessed at $202300. I can't vouch for anything else in the county but this bs is just what I have run across.

Anonymous said...

It took me some time but I finally found it. The County Career service manual clearly states under Section 4.021 "Periodically a pay survey or other assessment of pay rates and practices, comparable to the Northampton County Labor market, shall be made for purposes of ascertaining the relationship between salaries in the community and in the Career Service, Based on such survey, the Department of Human Resources shall report the findings to the County Executive.

Then Regulation 4.03 states "Periodically, pay scales shall be reviewed for competitiveness in the market place.

These Regulations are adopted by a County Resolution and like our Home Rule Charter are to be obeyed. Why isn't County Council following their own laws? They make these laws and the Administration is supposed to follow them.

Not only is Zrinski in violation, the whole Council is in neglect and the Administration in violation of existing laws. If they follow the laws and the rules we wouldn't be in this predicament of poor wages and not enough staff. McClure said in the newspaper that a wage survey isn't needed. He should follow the law. A wage survey is mandated.