Jockeys' Guild to pull supplemental insurance for New Jersey riders as of July 1

The Jockeys’ Guild has informed its members that riders will no longer be provided Guild-supplemented benefits as of July 1 in the event of being injured at tracks in New Jersey, where riders are covered by the state’s worker’s compensation program, in protest of new rules in the state that prohibit jockeys from using the whip “except for reasons of safety.”

In a letter dated June 7, the Guild said that the organization’s board of directors voted one week earlier “to preclude coverage for any injuries sustained” at Monmouth and the Meadowlands, another New Jersey track, “while the current crop rule is in effect,” beginning July 1. The letter also says that riders will no longer be required to contribute mount fees to the Guild for rides in New Jersey beginning on that date.

The letter was first reported Monday by Thoroughbred Daily News.

“For jockeys who are continuing to ride at Monmouth Park or the Meadowlands, or those who are anticipating riding there in the future, you may wish to obtain private disability and other benefit coverage to replace those benefits,” the letter states.

The discontinuation of the benefits will have a less significant impact in New Jersey than in most other racing states due to the eligibility of riders in New Jersey for the state’s worker’s compensation coverage. Under worker’s compensation, riders are eligible for payments in the event of any injury at a licensed racing facility.

Terry Meyocks, the chief executive of the guild, acknowledged on Tuesday that the worker’s compensation program provides riders in New Jersey with benefits in the event of injury, but said that the guild provides some supplemental temporary disability payments from its own funds in worker’s compensation states. In addition to New Jersey, worker’s compensation covers riders in California, Maryland, and New York.

Dennis Drazin, the president of the horsemen-owned company that manages Monmouth under a lease with the state, said that the discontinuation is unlikely to have a significant impact on the current number of jockeys riding at Monmouth. However, he said that management intended to organize meetings with riders in order to ensure that jockeys know about the benefits provided by worker’s compensation.

“We provide probably the best coverage in the country,” Drazin said. “The guild knows that. It’s just a matter of making sure riders know that.”

Drazin said that approximately 25 guild members have ridden races this year at Monmouth, which began its 53-date meet on May 28.

The guild has voiced its opposition to the new rule ever since it was first proposed late in 2019. The rule was formally adopted late last year, after live racing in New Jersey had ended for the year. This year, the guild attempted to get a temporary restraining order barring the rule from going into effect, but the request was denied. Its appeal of the rule is still making its way through the New Jersey court system.

Several top-class riders, such as Joe Bravo and Antonio Gallardo, have not ridden at Monmouth this year, citing the new rule. The rule is considered the most prohibitive in the country, with an explicit ban on using the whip to “encourage” a horse. Some jockeys have ridden at the track this year without carrying a whip.

The guild said in its letter that it believes the rule creates an “increase of risk” that creates a “greater exposure” for the guild under its current insurance policies. While Meyocks acknowledged that the costs of the insurance policy had not gone up, he said that any injuries suffered by riders at Monmouth could have a bearing on future insurance costs.

Drazin said that he was concerned that the guild had “found the wrong target” to demonstrate its dissatisfaction with the rule.

“Frankly, it comes down to that I think this is the wrong approach for the guild to take,” Drazin said. “The jockeys who are guild members who are riding at Monmouth are not at fault here. The guild’s fight is with the racing commission.”