Governor Signs Executive Order Protecting New Jersey Jobs

(Trenton) – Governor James E. McGreevey today signed an Executive Order that will protect New Jersey jobs by restricting the manner in which State agencies outsource work to foreign countries.

“With the threat of more companies outsourcing their work to add to their bottom line, it is our responsibility to protect our jobs from going over seas,” said McGreevey. “I am proud to sign an Executive Order that will restrict the State from doing business with any company which chooses to take jobs away from our hard working people and send them offshore.”

The Executive Order directs and mandates that State agencies must require vendors (and their subcontractors) seeking state contracts for services to disclose the country in which the services under the contract will be performed.

It also prohibits State agencies from awarding a contract to a vendor (or their subcontractors) performing the services under the contract in a foreign country, unless one of the following conditions is met:

· The vendor or its subcontractor provides a unique service and no comparable domestically-provided service can adequately duplicate the service;

· A significant and substantial economic cost factor exists such that failing to use the vendor’s services would result in economic hardship to the State;

· The Treasurer determines that a failure to use the vendor’s or subcontractor’s services would be inconsistent with the public interest.

Joining the Governor at today’s Executive Order signing were the Department of Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Kevin P. McCabe, New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech and several labor leaders from throughout the State.

“Today New Jersey takes an important step towards protecting the jobs of its workers,” said McCabe. “But to further protect its workforce, New Jersey must maintain its role as a national leader in job training and workforce development. We have trained more than 100,000 workers over the past two and a half years, and furthering that investment will retain existing jobs and create new opportunities.”

Projections by Forrester, an information technology consulting firm, predicts that the number of U.S. jobs outsourced will grow from about 400,000 in 2004 to 3.3 million by 2015. According to a report issued by New Jersey Policy Perspective, 492,000 jobs in the State are vulnerable to outsourcing.

“Today is a great day because we have a Governor who recognizes that ‘offshore outsourcing’ is a threat to workers throughout our State and he has taken the initiative and displayed the courage to remedy it,” said Wowkanech. “Corporations that outsource exploit the global economy in order to reap even higher profits, while workers suffer. The State should not be in the business of supporting this exploitation and today's Executive Order ensures that will not happen.”

Today’s signing is just one of many steps Governor McGreevey has taken to enhance and protect the workforce of New Jersey. To date, the Governor has provided customized training grants that allow companies to tailor the training they provide to meet the needs of their workforce and he is opening 18 Business Resource Centers across the state to help businesses find trained workers and provide them with the resources they need to compete in the state. The State also is providing college credit for union apprenticeships.

Below is a copy of the E.O.

EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 129

WHEREAS, the State of New Jersey, with the fourth highest job growth rate in the United States over the last twelve months, is among the nation’s leaders in economic recovery; and

WHEREAS, in order to continue this economic prosperity, the State of New Jersey supports every opportunity to attract and retain businesses, strengthen its workforce, and build vibrant cities; and

WHEREAS, the act of corporate off-shoring can result in the relocation of New Jersey jobs overseas; and

WHEREAS, New Jersey State departments and agencies (State contracting agencies) procure annually billions of dollars worth of goods and services, by contract, through public and private vendor corporations and businesses; and

WHEREAS, New Jersey State government awards contracts based on a determination of “best value,” which includes an evaluation of price and may include other factors, including, but not limited to, environmental considerations, quality, and vendor performance; and

WHEREAS, the State of New Jersey should be aware of how and where State procurement tax dollars are spent;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JAMES E. McGREEVEY, Governor of the State of New Jersey, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and by the Statutes of this State, do hereby ORDER and DIRECT:

1. Consistent with State law, the State contracting agencies shall develop policies and procedures to ensure that all vendors seeking to enter into any contract in which services are procured on behalf of the State of New Jersey must disclose:

a. The location by country where services under the contract will be performed; and

b. Any subcontracting of services under the contract and the location by country where any subcontracted services will be performed.

The State of New Jersey shall not award a contract to a vendor that does not provide all disclosures required above.

2. The State of New Jersey shall not award a contract to a vendor that submits a bid proposal to perform services, or have a subcontractor perform services, pursuant to the contract at a site outside the United States, unless one of the following conditions is met:

a. The vendor or its subcontractor provides a unique service, and no comparable domestically-provided service can adequately duplicate the unique features of the service provided by the vendor or its subcontractor; or

b. A significant and substantial economic cost factor exists such that a failure to use the vendor’s or subcontractor's services would result in economic hardship to the State of New Jersey; or

c. The Treasurer determines that a failure to use the vendor’s or subcontractor's services would be inconsistent with the public interest.

3. If, during the term of the contract, the contractor or subcontractor has declared that services will be performed in the United States and proceeds to shift services outside of the United States, the contractor shall be deemed in breach of contract, unless the State contracting agency shall first have determined in writing that extraordinary circumstances require the shift of services or that a failure to shift the services would result in economic hardship to the State of New Jersey.

4. In developing the policies and procedures directed under this Order, the State contracting agencies must consider the requirements of New Jersey’s contracting laws, the best interests of the State of New Jersey and its citizens, as well as applicable federal and international requirements.

5. The provisions of this Order do not apply to contracts for academic instruction, educational or research services entered into by the State’s public institutions of higher education.

6. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or other portion of this Order is, for any reason, declared unconstitutional or invalid, in whole or in part, by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed severable, and such unconstitutionality or invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this law, which remaining portions shall continue in full force and effect.

7. This Order shall take effect immediately.

GIVEN, under my hand and seal this 9th day of September in the Year of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Four, and of the Independence of the United States, the Two Hundred and Twenty-Ninth.

/s/ James E. McGreevey

Governor

Attest:

/s/ Mark J. Fleming

Deputy Chief Counsel to the Governor