Editorial Op-ed
Support your local paper
President John F. Kennedy perhaps
best summarized the importance of
a free press in an address before the
American Newspaper Publishers Association
back in April 1961.
“Without debate, without criticism, no
Administration and no country can succeed
— and no republic can survive,” said
Kennedy, who made a specifi c point of
noting that the press is the only business
in America “specifi cally protected by the
Constitution” so it may “inform, arouse,
refl ect … indicate our crises and choices,
to lead, mold, educate, and sometimes even
anger public opinion.”
But Constitutional protection is not
enough these days to ensure a free press
in this country.
In recent years, too many news organizations
have scaled back operations, cut
staff and even closed altogether because
of a lack of revenue in an ever-changing
media landscape.
Fortunately, journalism in America
stands a great chance of not only surviving,
but thriving, for decades to come if
Congress passes a bipartisan bill to support
it — the Local Journalism Sustainability
Act.
Should it become law, the measure
would provide tax breaks for news organizations
to hire journalists; credits
for small businesses to advertise in their
local papers; and up to $250 a year to
individuals who purchase newspaper
subscriptions.
Not surprisingly, New York Congress
members who know the value of the local
press are front and center in support of
this legislation, and they come from both
sides of the aisle: including Democrats
Tom Suozzi, Gregory Meeks, Carolyn
Maloney and Grace Meng; and Republicans
John Katko, Lee Zeldin and Claudia
Tenney.
The Local Journalism Sustainability
Act provides the lifeline community news
organizations have long needed without
infringing upon their editorial independence.
It will enable newsrooms across the
country to have the resources and people
power needed to better cover every corner
of their community — and better inform
their residents.
That will ensure, as Kennedy said in
1961, that every person in this republic
“will be what they were born to be: free
and independent.”
Publisher of The Villager, Villager Express, Chelsea Now,
Downtown Express and Manhattan Express
PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER
CEO & CO-PUBLISHER
EDITOR IN CHIEF
REPORTERS
CONTRIBUTORS
ART DIRECTOR
ADVERTISING
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES
PUBLISHER’S LIABILITY FOR ERROR
The Publisher shall not be liable for slight changes
or typographical errors that do not lessen the value
of an advertisement. The publisher’s liability for
others errors or omissions in connection with an
advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the
advertisement in any subsequent issue.
Published by Schneps Media
One Metrotech North, 3rd floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Phone: (718) 260-2500
Fax: (212) 229-2790
On-line: www.thevillager.com
E-mail: news@thevillager.com
© 2021 Schneps Media
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA SCHNEPS
ROBERT POZARYCKI
EMILY DAVENPORT
KEVIN DUGGAN
DEAN MOSES
ALEJANDRA O’CONNELLDOMENECH
BOB KRASNER
TEQUILA MINSKY
MARCOS RAMOS
CLIFFORD LUSTER
(718) 260-2504
CLUSTER@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
GAYLE GREENBURG
JULIO TUMBACO
ELIZABETH POLLY
New York Press Association
Member of the National
Newspaper Association
Member of the
Member of the
Minority Women Business Enterprise
New York’s injured
workers need support
BY WILLIAM TURLEY
New York’s injured workers have
long had to deal with a confusing
system to fi nd solutions that meet
their needs. Further complicating matters,
the Workers’ Compensation Board has
continued implementing new rules and
regulations that put injured workers into
uncomfortable and risky situations during
the COVID-19 pandemic.
As of Aug. 16, 2021, a New York State
Executive Order expired, forcing partially
disabled workers to seek employment just
to receive their rightful compensation.
The Workers’ Compensation Board
insisted that injured workers in New York
resume job searches to receive ongoing
lost-wage benefi ts, a practice that was suspended
by the executive order due to the
onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Board recently recognized the risks
associated with the labor attachment and
has now clarifi ed that they will accommodate
current restrictions in mobility
associated with the recent uptick of the
COVID-19 delta variant and does not
require injured workers to leave home to
apply for work in-person.
While the Board may have clarifi ed that
job searches can be done virtually, they
cannot control the employers’ review and
interview process.
If an injured worker begins a virtual
job search and employers then ask them
to come in person for rounds of interviews,
how does this injured worker deny
an in-person interview when they must
show a “good faith” job search effort?
PHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES
The injured worker must decide between
receiving compensation and their health
and safety.
The Board must provide the necessary
protection and support to injured workers
who are already struggling and dealing
with a great deal of stress.
From my fi rsthand experience of working
with injured workers day in and day
out, I urge the Workers’ Compensation
Board to reverse its decision.
From March 7, 2020, to Aug. 16, 2021,
the Board did not require injured workers
to demonstrate that they were attached to
the labor market to maintain partial disability
payments. COVID-19 is still here and
the Workers’ Compensation Board itself
is still operating from home, so why must
injured workers undergo a risky job search?
This rule has consistently impacted New
York’s communities of color at a disproportionate
rate.
This, coupled with the fact that our communities
of color have also been impacted
by COVID-19 at a higher rate, further
underscores the need to fi x New York’s
inaccessible compensation system and
show empathy and compassion towards
injured workers.
New York’s injured workers deserve a
system that prioritizes their health and
safety as they recover from injuries received
in the workplace. Requiring injured
workers to jeopardize their health during
a pandemic to get the benefi ts that many
workers rely on while unable to work is
unfair and unreasonable.
William Turley is the President of the
Injured Workers’ Bar Association.
8 September 23, 2021 Schneps Media
/www.thevillager.com
link
link
