WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – When it comes to jobs, child care shortages, immigration policies and budget cuts have an effect.
State Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon talked about all of it during Thursday’s visit to Watertown.
She took a tour of the First Step Day Care facility at the Dulles State Office Building.
First Step’s Executive Director, Sasha Jackson, says having the commissioner at her facility is important as the state shows its support for more child care facilities to help moms and dads be part of the workforce.
“With them being here and showing that, I think it’s a great thing so everyone can see that what we do is very valuable, and it’s the foundation for the kids to have a better school time or just a better life,” she said.
The North Country’s largest private industry is agriculture. And getting people to work those farms is crucial. Reardon doesn’t like the effects Washington’s immigration policy is having in New York state.
“Governor Hochul has been very outspoken about this. You know, these are essential workers for our farmers and we want to make sure that we keep the workforce that they need. Some of the raids have really been alarming to be quite frank,” she said.
Tourism is also a big part of the local economy. President Trump is promoting no tax on tips for restaurant and bar staff. Reardon says a lot isn’t known about the policy yet, but touts what New York does do in this sector of the economy.
“In the state of New York, we oversee all of the wage an hour laws. So if you’re a tipped employee, you make a sub minimum wage, we make sure that you get the minimum wage if your tips don’t equal out what the minimum wage would be,” she said.
Reardon is also concerned about the federal government slashing Medicaid. She’s fearful it could lead to rural hospitals closing their doors.
“It is a massive, massive cut across the state. You are definitely going to see rural hospitals close because they will not have the funding they need to stay open. That is critical in places like this. Think about a pregnant woman having to drive two hours to see a doctor,” she said.
While Reardon takes that opinion, North Country healthcare facilities haven’t sounded the alarm over the pending Medicaid changes, saying the exact effects aren’t known just yet.
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