NC labor commissioner candidate: Budget delay endangers workers and all of us | Opinion
The writer is a candidate for NC labor commissioner.
We are more than a month into North Carolina’s new fiscal year and we still don’t have a state budget. This is a huge problem for N.C. workers, their safety and the safety of residents.
When a Carowinds visitor spotted a crack in the Fury 325 roller coaster in June, the fear went national. People wondered: Who’s supposed to inspect those to make sure people don’t get on rides that are damaged? I’ve talked to parents whose children rode the Fury days before that video went viral who now don’t trust the safety of our amusement parks.
North Carolina’s Department of Labor has over 100 compliance officer jobs, charged with inspecting every elevator, amusement park ride and every escalator every year. But as N.C. Labor Commissioner Josh Dobson said on a WUNC podcast, just weeks before the Carowinds discovery, about 25% of those jobs were empty.
House Speaker Tim Moore said last week there is “zero” chance the state budget will be ready by Sept. 1. Not having a new budget, and not knowing what — if any — raises will be possible, is making it hard for departments to hire and keep workers. And job vacancies make it hard for state employees to do their jobs. That hurts our safety.
The budget sets salaries for people key to our daily life: safety compliance officers, teachers, medical professionals and other public safety workers. Without a new budget, state departments have to use last year’s numbers for pay. They don’t know if they can offer competitive wages — and that means more vacancies, as people choose not to work in these jobs.
North Carolina’s Office of State Human Resources says nearly 1 in 4 state jobs are unfilled. That includes 5,000 public school teachers.
Teachers: Would you choose to take a job when you don’t know what your pay will be?
Parents: Are you OK with your child starting a new year without a teacher?
Due to the bus driver shortage, Wake County is now encouraging parents of public school students to find their own transportation to and from school for the 2023–2024 school year. While superintendents and principals try to hire, and families try to plan their lives for the school year, here’s what they can count on: No new budget until after the school year starts.
Here’s an even scarier aspect of the safety issue: Part of a N.C. Department of Labor compliance officer’s job is to prevent accidents. Another part is to look into accidents after they happen. If one-fourth of those jobs are empty, more accidents are likely — at a time when workplace deaths in the state are rising. Those accidents must be investigated, leaving even less time for prevention.
We need a fully staffed state compliance team so that every elevator, escalator, roller coaster, ski lift, and every ride and Ferris wheel at every county and state fair is inspected correctly, and as often as it needs to be. An efficient government means making sure departments can do their jobs on time, every time — not waiting until a tragedy happens.
In January, three Charlotte construction workers were killed after the improperly installed scaffolding they were working on collapsed. Two construction companies were fined over $100,000. According to the Department of Labor, the scaffolding was not properly inspected for defects before shifts.
Compliance officers, like state workers across all departments, work hard and are having to work overtime to keep our state safe and running. The WUNC podcast noted that 37% of people hired for state jobs leave them during the first year. Constantly having to hire and train new workers is expensive for taxpayers and fiscally irresponsible.
Our state workers deserve raises. Raises will help fill the empty jobs, prevent turnover and improve workplace and public safety across the state. When these jobs are empty, important work does not get done, safety is less sure, and it is harder for families and businesses to thrive. The N.C. General Assembly must do its job and pass a budget to fill jobs and do right by our workers as they work to keep our state — and all of us — safe.
Braxton Winston is serving his third term on the Charlotte City Council.
