Are more state employees retiring than usual? The state and unions have the option of continuing the same level of raises for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024, or they can negotiate different compensation levels. 1 Killed, Child Critically Injured In Major Highway Crash: CT News, Meteorologist Leaves TV News To Take Over Family Business: CT News, 3 Soldiers Killed After 2 U.S. Army Helicopters Crash In Alaska. In an effort to mitigate the potential loss of thousands of state employees, Gov. Going forward, these employees will be entitled to receive wage and benefit provisions that their union counterparts will receive, per language the governors office included in the 837-page budget implementer bill passed this legislative session, McCaw said. Lamonts predecessor, Dannel Malloy, once boasted to a union gathering, I am your servant. Lamont is also in public (union) service, willingly or not. The best long-run thing for the state pension system is to have inflation just at or above 2%. Today were living in a post-COVID world, where employees and not employers are ruling the job market, said Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, co-chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee. But the Lamont administration is facing a gathering wave of retirements, producing a sense of urgency that Geballe says is shared by labor and management. Ned Lamont in Darien earlier this month. The Connecticut State Legislature will begin its 2023 session on January 4thand will adjourn on June 7th. Geballe said he just renewed his registration on-line. The year over year increases drive up the amount paid out by Connecticuts severely underfunded State Employee Retirement System. This deal was billed as a retention effort, said Rep. Laura Devlin, R- Fairfield, who is campaigning for lieutenant governor as the running mate of GOP gubernatorial contender Bob Stefanowski of Madison. Several Republican lawmakers decried the deal and said it would exacerbate Connecticuts fiscal woes. Gov. An arbitrator had already awarded some unions a 3% general wage hike for 2021-22 before Lamont and labor negotiators settled on a smaller cost-of-living bump and bonuses. Gusty winds add new twist to brush fires in CT, officials say, What's next for the nuclear waste that's been in CT for 50 years, Building emissions are a key climate change contributor in CT, After decades in unmarked grave, CT homicide victim put to rest. The $2 billion agreement also includes special lump-sum payments of $2,500 for active employees who've . The proposed contract is generous. Its a matter of whether we can afford it.. The Senate gave final approval Friday to a four-year package of raises for state employees that includes $3,500 in bonuses to help stem a surge in worker retirements. Sal Luciano, a former social worker who is the president of the Connecticut AFL-CIO, said many state agencies are understaffed. Lamont could rehire retired workers as independent contractors, but then he would be paying those fees as well as funding retirement benefits. Connecticut Property Taxes In Every Town: Who Pays The Most? For some of Connecticuts highest paid pensioners like Jack Blechner, a former UConn Health Center physician who received $342,325.14 in 2020, the COLA amounts to an additional $12,323.70 per year. Julia Bergman is a former reporter with Hearst Connecticut Media Group. The one thing we know about Ned Lamont or any Democrat, for that matter is that he will not fight the unions. While annual retirements usually range from 2,000 to 2,500 per calendar year, more than 3,400 state employees have either retired or filed their written intentions to do so between January and March 31, 2022, alone. 3.2K views, 182 likes, 87 loves, 302 comments, 161 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from The Victory Channel: The Victory Channel is LIVE with Victory News! Government bureaucracies are notoriously resistant to change, layered with the accretion of rules, processes, union contracts, all contributing to a workplace culture. It is cloud-based, lessening the states reliance on servers, improving security and taking a step toward the ultimate goal of easing the sharing of data and documents among agencies. The agreements, which unions ratified earlier this spring, are retroactive to the start of this fiscal year, which began last July 1. Gov. The formula used took 60% of the increase in the Consumer Price Index ( CPI-W) up to 6% and . Your donation today will allow us to continue this work on your behalf. The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Workers and Clerical Workers known as the CPI-W increased 6 percent between July of 2020 and July of 2021, according the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with the price of nearly everything increasing substantially in recent months. All Rights Reserved. Greenwich resident Red Jahncke is president of The Townsend Group International, a business consultancy in Connecticut, and a freelance columnist published in national and Connecticut newspapers. Because the state is facing a massive retirement wave, which, if mishandled, could cripple state government. SEBAC employees who are employed before March . Topics you care about, straight to your inbox, More than 46,000 Connecticut state employees could soon get a significant raise -- and bonuses thanks to a new union. Employees would also get a $2,500 bonus if they are employed as of March 31, 2022, and a $1,000 if they are employed July 1, 2022. 1 Killed, Child Critically Injured In Major Highway Crash: CT News, Meteorologist Leaves TV News To Take Over Family Business: CT News, 3 Soldiers Killed After 2 U.S. Army Helicopters Crash In Alaska. The bonuses, the GOP argued, are hardly the key to retaining workers, as Lamont has claimed. A third of the state workforce is going to retire in the next three years, Geballe said. The package was previously approved by the House. functions now spread across agencies, just as Raymond recently struck a five-year deal with Microsoft that replaces a dozen separate agency agreements. Weve already seen the changing workforce, Luciano said. A proposal to give every full-time employee a $10,000 raise next year is causing some division among leaders in the town of Ellettsville. DAgostino said he believes arbitrators would have awarded unions annual cost-of-living raises of 3% or 3.5% given the state governments enhanced ability to pay. Because of the high rate of inflation, the July COLAs are calculated based on 60 percent of CPI-W, which translates to a bump of 3.6 percent as of July 2021. 1 week of full access. Thats a big risk, but its also an amazing opportunity to reinvent how we do things, to bring in technology to automate a lot of the manual processes that can be more efficiently done by software today.. 1 Week Subscription - $2.99 / 7 Days. Not this weeks data release showing that the median American household saw its income fall 2.9 percent last year while Connecticut state employees got a 5.5 percent wage increase. Josh Geballe, the states chief operating officer and commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services, said state agency heads have found it difficult to promote top performers in their departments because the employees would either have to take a pay cut or worry they wont be afforded the same prospective increases as those in bargaining units. On top of that, most workers would "step" into a higher pay grade, adding an extra 2% to most raises. By the latest estimates of the comptroller's office, 14,764 state employees a quarter of the workforce will be eligible to retire on July 1, 2022, when a concession deal negotiated in . They are our people, who we count on each day to make us safe, she said. There will be no guaranteed minimum for those who retire after July 1, 2022, and their first potential COLA would come in 30 months, not 12. Register to attend in-person | Register to attend virtually. They also cover the next two fiscal years and potentially 2024-25 as well. Each year includes a 2.5% general wage increase, as well as a step hike for all but the most senior workers. One lump sum payment retroactive to 2021 with full-time employees receiving $2,500 and part-time employees receiving a prorated amount $1,000 lump sum payment effective fiscal 2023 and prorated for part-time employees I dont believe, fundamentally, that this agreement is fair at all.. The 2022 State Holiday and Check Dates calendar for State Employees. ALERT: Tell lawmakers to vote NO on the TCI Gas Tax Loophole that forces CT residents to pay unlimited energy taxes! Ned Lamont says are essential to help stem a surge in state employee retirements, are expected to be ratified Friday by the Senate, where Democrats also hold a majority. That will be followed by 2.5 percent raises on July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023. Watch Live at 7:00 PM: The U.S. and the Holocaust, a film by Ken Burns | Screening & Panel Discussion . That will be followed by 2.5 percent raises on July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023. State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition. How will state and local budgets be affected by fewer federal resources? community-supported public media service, Connecticut Public has relied on donor support for more than 50 years. The bargaining units ratified the agreement earlier in the week, and it now it heads to the state legislature for consideration. 2:19 pm. 90% of our revenue is contributed. Negotiators will meet again to determine raises after the time period. But most House Republicans who spoke in Thursdays debate predicted taxpayers wouldnt be as happy as state employee unions are. Photos: Iconic Landmarks To Visit Across CT. Watching is one of those who spoke against it, Sen. Craig Miner. The budget is expected to be a record high for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, which will start July 1. I think were at a time where change is coming, whether people like it or not. The $3 billion in budget reserves and $4 billion in projected surplus pales in comparison with the $95.4 billion in long-term unfunded obligations Connecticut has, ODea said, referring to the combined pension, retirement health care and bonded debt the Lamont administration listed last November in its annual Fiscal Accountability Report. Connecticut State Department of Administrative Services CT.gov Home Department of Administrative Services Human Resources Business Rules and Regulations Compensation Salary Increase Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) Salary Increase Non-Represented Employees Expense Reimbursement/Meal Allowance Pay Differential Longevity Recruitment Pay Ned Lamont, a cable-television entrepreneur who took office on January 9 and hired Geballe two weeks later. Private-sector employees can only dream of having that, said Sen. Henri Martin, R-Bristol. So why might Lamont do something so patently unfair and so politically toxic as awarding pay raises to already overcompensated state workers while most Connecticut citizens and voters have been and still are hurting very badly? Ned Lamont and president of state's network of community colleges square off in showdown over state funding. After leaving IBM, he became chief executive officer of Core Informatics, a software startup that Hartford Business Journal included in its 2017 list of best places to work in Connecticut. The state and unions have the option of continuing the same level of raises for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024, or they can negotiate different compensation levels. Your email address will not be published. The alternatives are suboptimal. Lamont, who said that in June 2020 when asked about the pay raise to take effect just days later on July 1. Dannel P. Malloy takes effect. She noted that West Virginia recently granted state employees a 5% raise while Arizona bumped pay for its correction officers by 20% and for workers in many other departments by 10%. I dont believe, fundamentally, that this agreement is fair at all.. Connecticut holds $3.1 billion in its rainy day fund, equal to 15% of annual operating costs the maximum allowed by law. The increases, part of a four-year package negotiated by Gov. Now shes asking for help herself, One musician remembers what it was like to tour the world with singer and activist Harry Belafonte, Connecticut COVID data: Your town's infection rate, hospitalizations & vaccinations, Tracking health threats, one sewage sample at a time, COVID during pregnancy may alter brain development in boys. Marc can be reached at, Connecticut saw a 1,600 decrease in nonfarm industry positions in December, while November private sector gains (3,300) were revised down [], Eviction cases in Hartford and Bridgeport have remained far below historical averages since the Supreme Court overturned the federal eviction []. Inevitably, it will be highly unpopular, so the announcement will be buried as deeply as possible and spun like a top by Lamonts spokespeople. The House, where Democrats also hold a majority, approved the package 96-52 on Thursday. ThanKs Vin, Lyle Scruggs Published April 18, 2022 at 3:52 PM EDT. Fazio said it reflects the pull unions have on state government, and that taxpayers will end up footing the bill. Osten said the raises reflect the valuable work state employees provide daily, and particularly throughout the coronavirus pandemic. 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So, more outsourcing would compound the squeeze on the nonprofits, either rendering their condition even more precarious or necessitating a significant increase in their reimbursement rates. If you have employees affected by the . Ned Lamont and president of state's network of community colleges square off in showdown over state funding. CONNECTICUT The state Senate gave final approval to the raise and bonus package for state employees. And thats why we want to work with you to build a broad-based coalition to encourage sound policy reforms to enable Connecticut residents to forge a better future for themselves and their families. In a letter to his co-chair in management, Rinker wrote: I predict that some day some one will want to change state employment and the report you signed off on wil be the basis for that change., Change is coming for Connecticut state employees, 2023 Hearst Media Services Connecticut, LLC, Police: Pedestrian killed in crash on Route 9 in Middletown, Police: Horses starved, kept in unsanitary conditions on CT farm, Middletown to restart Bird e-bike, scooter microtransit program, Middletown residents cheer decision to fully replace Pameacha dam, Cromwell man sentenced for carjacking date at knifepoint in 2020, Police: Suspect in Cromwell hotel robbery threatened to use a gun, Middletown Mayor Ben Florsheim begins campaign for 2nd term, 2 Middletown youths charged in connection with school fight, Middlesex County Historical Society to receive 3 historic objects, East Hampton fire department marks 100 years with Bevin cowbells, Police: Pedestrian struck, killed in Route 9 crash in Middletown, New Britain bar's liquor license suspended after serving alcohol to minors, officials say, Police: Horses starved and kept in unsanitary conditions on Middletown property, Police: Threat made to Middletown schools deemed not credible, CT records first cases of new COVID variant Arcturus, transmission remains low, Police: Mystic woman killed, mother and daughter seriously hurt in Gold Star Highway crash in Groton. So, it is a safe bet that Lamont will sign a juicy new wage contract with SEBAC. Gov. This proposed contract is a raw deal for the working people of this state, Sen. Ryan Fazio (R-Greenwich) said. The agreement would cost the state nearly $1.9 billion over four fiscal years, according to nonpartisan fiscal analysts. Connecticut holds $3.1 billion in its rainy day fund, equal to 15% of annual operating costs the maximum allowed by law. Geballes office is open to a conference room, where an erasable white board hangs on the wall, running the length of the room. 4:04 pm. In a bill drafted . They also cover the next two fiscal years and potentially 2024-25 as well. The state is so intractable about its longterm bureaucratic practices. 2023 The Conneticut News Project. Get CT Mirror emails in your inbox daily. But Gov. The managers who will receive the raises include division heads at state agencies, as well as commissioners and. But that surge followed a nearly decade-long stretch in which state tax receipts from the same source badly underperformed. The deal works out to about $40,000 in raises per state employee over four years, Fazio said, which works out to about $1,300 per Connecticut household. To that end, we have produced a new edition of our Charter for Change. (Sorry for the caps, wont let me shift), Hope McKiernan "But this is also a unique situation where state employees did extraordinary work during a paradigm-altering pandemic, inflation has concurrently increased, and the state workforce could potentially undergo significant changes due to retirements and uncompetitive wages.". Republicans argue the SEBAC package will lead to big deficits in a few years -- and tax hikes. Were still largely in a world by the way, very similar to most every other state where there are numerous processes which are still paper based, which are still highly manual, which rely on very old custom software, Geballe said. Access all Premium Content and the E-Edition for 1 day. Now shes asking for help herself, One musician remembers what it was like to tour the world with singer and activist Harry Belafonte, Connecticut COVID data: Your town's infection rate, hospitalizations & vaccinations, Tracking health threats, one sewage sample at a time, COVID during pregnancy may alter brain development in boys. Creative Commons. Ned Lamont contracted with the Boston Consulting Group for a report of how to increase state government efficiency. As a But Gov. When you do good work, you get a bonus, said Lamont. Hazard or pandemic pay wasnt part of the negotiations, but will be resolved as part of another agreement, Lamont said. Marc E. Fitch is the author of several books and novels including Shmexperts: How Power Politics and Ideology are Disguised as Science and Paranormal Nation: Why America Needs Ghosts, UFOs and Bigfoot. The full General Assembly is expected to vote on it as early as this week. This is a carousel. Our economy has grown at one of the slowest rates in the nation for the past decade, and we are getting outpaced year after year. State government coffers have swelled since 2018, due in large part to a robust stock market that has bolstered income tax receipts tied to capital gains and other investment earnings. There is also a large group if tier 1s who receive 3% guaranteed, no inflation adjustments. She noted that West Virginia recently granted state employees a 5% raise, while Arizona bumped pay for its correction officers by 20% and for workers in many other departments by 10%. Not the fact that Connecticut has had a big contraction in its workforce during the pandemic of about 6 percent and a top 10 unemployment rate, currently exceeding 7 percent, versus a national average nearing 5 percent. The State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition represents 35 different bargaining units and more than 40,000 state employees. 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"Often they work in dorms where there are one or two officers to keep peace among 100 of more inmates, said Sean Howard, a corrections officer at Cheshire Correctional Institution. More than 30 state employee bargaining units have ratified contracts that would provide more than 40,000 workers with $3,500 in bonuses by July, along with three years of raises, the State. "I've got to recruit and keep them in order to keep our government going, he said. Finance panel: Next CT tax fairness study must focus on inequality, CT budget battle heats up as Lamont offers rosy financial picture, State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. Lamont joined others to announce the deployment FEMAs new COVID-19 mobile vaccination unit, which is set up and running this week in the zoos parking lot. The Office of the State Comptroller reports that state government found a way to spend $47.11 billion in 2022 and, if trends continue, we can expect that number to grow even more going forward. We share the concern about whats going to happen in 2022, said Dave Glidden, the executive director of CSEA SEIU Local 2001, which represents 5,000 state employees. McCaw said some of the prior management positions that are now unionized include the assistant attorney general, state police captains and lieutenants, supervisors with the Department of Children and Families, parole managers and deputy wardens. I would say that largely we havent seen that partnership happen, but we continue to have the door wide open, Glidden said. Lamont called DAS one of the jobs where we wanted to think a little more out of the box., Like Lamont, Geballe is a graduate of the School of Management at Yale. 13 Week Package - $38.87 / 13 Weeks. Ned Lamont believes it will keep critical state workers on the job. The bonuses, the GOP argued, are hardly the key to retaining workers, as the governor and other Democrats claim. Some reflected frustrations by the public in dealing with state agencies, as well as employees knowing what is happening elsewhere in government. Josh Geballe, the commissioner of administrative services. Your pension is subject to an annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA). Its nothing more than a handout.. We were trying to get people not to retire well, thats not what this agreement does, said Sen. Craig Miner of Litchfield, ranking GOP senator on the Appropriations Committee. The agreement would cost the state nearly $1.9 billion over four fiscal years, according to nonpartisan fiscal analysts. Please reload the page and try again. 2K views, 27 likes, 7 loves, 18 comments, 0 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Dbstvstlucia: DBS MORNING SHOW & OBITUARIES 25TH APRIL 2023 APRIL 2023 No. Critics say the deal is too generous and could lead to future tax hikes. Let us be clear. The state is also hoping the increases will also attract more people to state-level management positions. Any wage hikes and benefits would come on the heels of big wage increases in 2019 and 2020 under the old wage contract, which expired this past summer. DAS says the process was cheaper, nearly paperless, and attracted a diverse pool of applicants with a third more women and minorities and a 105-percent increase in veterans. Jessica Hill / Associated Press More than 40,000 unionized state employees would receive $3,500 each in special bonuses by mid-July under tentative contract agreements reached this week with. The bonuses, the GOP argued, are hardly the key to retaining workers, as the governor and other Democrats claim. 2016 CT.gov | Connecticut's Official State Website, regular Part-timers would be eligible for prorated bonuses. The Senate gave final approval by a 22-13 vote on a plan to give unionized state workers a set of raises and bonuses. [your comment section will not enable me to type this in lower case] stop with the money illusion. Good question Hope I cant find the answer either. Based on the statutes governing Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) for CTRB members, the Connecticut Teachers' Retirement Board will be granting COLA as follows. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. The Florida House and Senate are working on a budget whose bottom line for state workers is a $224 million pay raise - that's about $44 a week, ($2,300 annually) for the 97,000 employees in the . Connecticut should be a place where everyone can thrive and with your help, it will be. The agreement would cost the state nearly $1.9 billion over four fiscal years, according to nonpartisan fiscal analysts. CONNECTICUT State officials announced the tentative state employee union bargaining agreement, which calls for multiple years of raises and bonus payments. By the latest estimates of the comptrollers office, 14,764 state employees a quarter of the workforce will be eligible to retire on July 1, 2022, when a concession deal negotiated in 2017 by the administration of Gov. His predecessor, Robert J. Rinker, co-chaired a labor-management committee that addressed some of the same issues now under review. And while some criticized the bonuses, the Hamden lawmaker and others say they would save the state money over the long haul. As we noted in a report andCT Mirrorop-ed last year, the debate over whether were in a national recession really misses the point for Connecticut residents. Keith is a graduate of and a former journalism instructor at the University of Connecticut. That helps focus peoples minds and increase their willingness to change and to take risks. Tier II is a non-contributory defined benefit retirement plan for most members. The [nonprofit] industry pegs the inflationary loss its taking on these payments at $460 million per year, according to the CT Mirror. Virtually everyone in the state knows the situation and feels it is unfair. The state usually experiences 2,000 to 2,500 annual state employee retirements, according to the CT Mirror. April 23, 2023 . Photos: Iconic Landmarks To Visit Across CT. How will schools be implementing to curriculum requirements? Its, Well, thats the way weve always done it. . (His mother, Shelley, a lawyer and professor of public health at Yale, is a founding board member of the nonprofit Connecticut News Project Inc., operator of CTMirror.org.). The announcement Thursday from the governors office of the 7.5% raises comes as union workers ramp up their fight for wage increases in their new contracts, which they are currently negotiating with the state. By, Corporate Support: Advertising & Sponsorship, See stories by Keith M. Phaneuf / CTMirror.org, Love Wins at WCSU benefit concert for saxophonists daughter lost at Sandy Hook, Week in CT News: Se'Cret Pierce killing, what's in our water, Zero interest loans are back for some home buyers in Connecticut, Erica Lafferty has been fighting since Sandy Hook. As a The easiest way out of the crisis is to keep employees on board by offering them generous pay and benefit incentives. Opinion: Gov. The $2,000 payment will only be available to employees who were hired or appointed before June 30, 2018. Negotiators will meet again to determine raises after the time period. Thats when more stringent limits on state retirement benefits, negotiated as part of a 2017 concessions deal with unions, take effect.
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