The ill effects of Obamacare continue to add up.
Towns in New Jersey plan to cut full time workers’ hours to avoid offering them health insurance because of Obamacare.
The Middletown township has announced that it will reduce hours from 25 of its employees to prepare for the looming implementation of Obamacare. The school district will cut back hours as well.
Toms River officials will also act accordingly to keep their costs low, due to the high expenses that Obamacare will impose.
Sharing the same plight, the Berkeley township (the municipality devastated by Hurricane Sandy) is considering a similar move. The township says that Sandy left them deep in financial throes and that Obamacare costs are simply out of their already limited budget. Township administrator Chris Reid explained that the "municipality will take a hard line on this issue when negotiating union contracts later this year."
Obamacare stipulates that an employer with more than 50 workers must offer them health insurance if they work 30 or more hours per week.
Speaking to News Channel 12, Chris Reid said "There isn’t one employee that anybody would want to see hurt…If it came down to shaving hours in order to save substantial dollars, that would be something that would have to be considered."
Municipalities will be tacked with additional costs, which could be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
While numerous businesses have spoken out against Obamacare, citing the high costs, this is one of the first instances in which primary schools have warned of the evils of Obamacare. President Obama promised education reform during his campaign, and it seems contradictory that one of his policies would directly inhibit the betterment of education by forcing municipalities to cut teachers' and other school employees' hours, thus reducing the quality of children’s education. Given the burdens they are now saddled with, surely the Berkeley township could use a helping hand and financial assistance, rather than added expenses.