There are nine classifications for custodians, 12 for assistant attorneys general, and a whopping 221 for program directors. The state is also hoping the increases will also attract more people to state-level management positions. All Rights Reserved. Thermo Fisher Scientific bought the company the same year. The formula used took 60% of the increase in the Consumer Price Index ( CPI-W) up to 6% and . Private-sector employees can only dream of having that, said Sen. Henri Martin, R-Bristol. DARRELL HACKETT Hed also like to talk about a classification system that is flexible and provides a career ladder. CT Saw Jobs Lost in December, Revised Private Sector Gains from 3,300 to 300, Evictions remain significantly down in Bridgeport, Hartford after end of eviction moratorium, Film Tax Credit Expansion Receives Criticism Across the Aisle, Its Christmas Time for the General Assembly but Not Everyone is Happy, UConn Says New Freedom of Expression Bill Not Necessary, Testimony in Opposition of HB 6929 Submitted by Bryce Chinault, Director of External Affairs, Connecticuts Voting Tabulators are Unreliable and Unserviceable, Over 200,000 people have moved out of Connecticut since 2010, as state economy declined, Dont Be Mean to Government Officials or Theyll Take Free Speech Away, Public Sector Job Growth Beats Out Private Sector In July. The state usually experiences 2,000 to 2,500 annual state employee retirements, according to the CT Mirror. Budget panel endorses raises, bonuses for CT state workers Full legislature expected to vote before May 4 by Keith M. Phaneuf April 18, 2022 @ 1:08 pm Rob Baril, the president of SEIU 1199,. The Malloy administration hired a customer-service expert to improve service at the much-maligned Department of Motor Vehicles, and Lamont won passage of legislation reducing the need for residents to go to the DMV: Drivers licenses now are good for eight years, not six; and renewals of vehicle registrations come every three years, not two. 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. Ned Lamont's administration and already ratified by the 35 . Each of the 3.6 million residents in Connecticut rely on the critical public services state workers provide whether you are standing in line at the DMV, attending a technical school, community college or state university, getting treatment at UConn Health, driving on our roads and bridges, enjoying a state park or beach, or any of the other ubiquitous public services you will be uplifted by these fair and honorable contracts, the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition wrote in a statement after the Senate vote. This is a carousel. Connecticut is facing pressure from the private sector, municipalities and other states for its workers, Osten said, adding that the pandemic has made many state jobs less attractive. Government bureaucracies are notoriously resistant to change, layered with the accretion of rules, processes, union contracts, all contributing to a workplace culture. As a
I think all of the stakeholders lament it, but then find the excuses for why we cant change it. Similar deals would pass automatically if the legislature didnt take action in the past, but a 2017 law requires approval from both chambers. Beginning after the July 1, 2022 cut off, the State has relinquished their obligation to adjust pension payments at least 2% (current minimum) for inflation. Youll notice when you look around here, there is no paper. With only 41 weeks remaining to replace retiring employees, the Lamont administration is fast approaching a severe manpower crisis. Ned Lamont and president of state's network of community colleges square off in showdown over state funding. Automation is a word that makes unions nervous, even as they acknowledge the nature of work is changing. Your email address will not be published. Since 1997, the State has used a formula to calculate the minimum cost of living adjustment. Give today at any amount and join the 50,000 members who are
My hypothesis coming in was that there are going to be more similarities to how we solve some of the challenges we have than differences, private to public, Geballe said. 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. Fazio said it reflects the pull unions have on state government, and that taxpayers will end up footing the bill. The comptrollers office cautions that some those eligible to retire will not yet have earned full retirement benefits, giving some an incentive to stay. CONNECTICUT The state Senate gave final approval to the raise and bonus package for state employees. The raises will cost the state $13.3 million and the bonuses $2 million. To that end, we have produced a new edition of our Charter for Change. 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. The legislature's Appropriations Committee endorsed significant raises and $3,500 in bonuses Monday for about 46,000 unionized state employees. SEBAC employees who are employed before March 31, 2022 would also get a $2,500 bonus. If you have employees affected by the . Part-timers would be eligible for prorated bonuses. Gov. And Lamont reported this week that the current fiscal years budget is projected to close on June 30 with an unprecedented $3.95 billion surplus, equal to nearly 20% of entire General Fund. There is ample evidence that this is a fair contract, a reasonable contract, an affordable contract, she said of Connecticuts wage hikes. The agreements, which unions ratified earlier this spring, are retroactive to the start of this fiscal year, which began last July 1. Employees who retire after that date will get less lucrative retirement benefits. There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. 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. Lamont said the state has to live within its means, but state employees did extraordinary work during the worst of the pandemic and inflation has increased costs. They are our people, who we count on each day to make us safe, she said. 0:36. Breaking from the status quo is very hard I think for people generally, but particularly in government, where you dont have competition the same way you do in the private sector, where if you dont change, if you dont innovate, if you dont find new ways to add value, eventually you go out of business and everybody loses their job. Those employed on July 15, 2022 would get a $1,000 bonus if the agreement is approved. The study also found that Connecticut state employees are compensated 33 percent more than a similar private sector employee when pension, healthcare and other fringe benefits are taken into account. 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. The easiest way out of the crisis is to keep employees on board by offering them generous pay and benefit incentives. With this agreement, we were able to achieve those goals in a realistic way that does not imperil our future prospects and honors the great service that has and will continue to benefit our residents, Lamont said in a statement. The State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition represents 35 different bargaining units and more than 40,000 state employees. This means they will apply to all Connecticut employees whose date of retirement is on or later than August 1, 2022.1 The 2022 Changes fall into three different categories: That marked a 9 percent increase from the previous year, which was the largest yearover-year change since at least 2014-2015, according to a CT Insider analysis of data from the . Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "ad6f3785a83847b97c7976185623d348" );document.getElementById("h4d5fc382f").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); 216 Main StreetHartford, CT 06106[emailprotected], 2021 Yankee Institute for Public Policy. The new deal will bring Microsoft 365 software to all state agencies. Creative Commons. Privacy Policy. DAS is the states landlord and construction manager, its hiring hall and purchasing agent, and, perhaps most vitally in the digital age, its information technology office. Union members have engaged in an all-out campaign of organizing and mobilizing to make our pay a priority for state leaders. Were working really hard to digitize everything we do.. That will be followed by 2.5 percent raises on July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023. 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. That's an incentive to keep people working after that retirement date.". Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. It is unsustainable and, more plainly, unjust. 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. And that was before surging state income and business tax receipts pushed this fiscal years surplus from $2.7 billion to $4 billion. It is tone deaf and appears to even regular folks like me to be pandering to special interests in an election year.". The Democratic-controlled Senate voted 22-13 along party lines to approve the contracts, which cover about 46,000 workers the bulk of the states workforce. Marc was a 2014 Robert Novak Journalism Fellow and his work has appeared in The Federalist, American Thinker, The Skeptical Inquirer, World Net Daily and Real Clear Policy. The agreement would cost the state nearly $1.9 billion over four fiscal years, according to nonpartisan fiscal analysts. Weve seen clerical workers go from a high of almost 9,000 to 4,000.. 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. . Get CT Mirror briefings with enterprise reporting, investigations and more in your inbox daily. Geballe is no stranger to bureaucracies and the opportunities, challenges and necessities of wrenching change: He spent 11 years at IBM, which employs 350,000 people worldwide and preaches that the world is in the midst of a fourth industrial revolution, a convergence of new technologies powered by cloud computing. Give today at any amount and join the 50,000 members who are
/. We enable organizations to maximize Sales target achievement using our Sales Incentive & Performance Management Technology. Efficiency is easier in concept than in actual practice. And that total is expected to grow considerably between now and July 1. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. Ned Lamont in Darien earlier this month. The Democratic-controlled Senate voted 22-13 along party lines to approve the contracts, which cover about 46,000 workers the bulk of the state's workforce. The budget is expected to be a record high for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, which will start July 1. Retired state employees now get annual cost-of-living adjustments: a minimum of 2 percent and a maximum of 7 percent, depending on inflation. But most House Republicans who spoke in Thursdays debate predicted taxpayers wouldnt be as happy as state employee unions are. The new raises are intended to give greater confidence to these managers that they will have consistent treatment with the union employees. There is also a large group if tier 1s who receive 3% guaranteed, no inflation adjustments. 1 week of full access. Private-sector employees can only dream of having that, said Sen. Henri Martin, R-Bristol. Watch Live at 7:00 PM: The U.S. and the Holocaust, a film by Ken Burns | Screening & Panel Discussion . Ned Lamont previously touted. State finances also are being supported this fiscal year and next by about $3 billion in emergency federal pandemic relief. For retirements prior to June 30, 2022, these cumulative raises will be paid each year on either January 1st or July 1st depending on your date of retirement (DOR). Keith has spent most of his 31 years as a reporter specializing in state government finances, analyzing such topics as income tax equity, waste in government and the complex funding systems behind Connecticuts transportation and social services networks. Sal Luciano, a former social worker who is the president of the Connecticut AFL-CIO, said many state agencies are understaffed. Nothing stands in the way of the ever-increasing generosity of state employee compensation. During that time Connecticuts average pension payment increased 15 percent from $34.589 in 2015 to $39,887 in 2020. So, it is a safe bet that Lamont will sign a juicy new wage contract with SEBAC. 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 []. 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. Republicans also said they appreciate the hard work of state employees, particularly during the worst of the coronavirus pandemic, but the issue isnt as simple as some believe. listeners, viewers, and readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information. Are more state employees retiring than usual? Note: the above image is a chart for the CPI-U, not the CPI-W. While we wait to see the thousands of individual and committee bills that while dominate the myriad policy debates this year, Yankee Institute is hard at work promoting free-market solutions to the problems we face from Stamford to Putnam and Mystic to Salisbury. December 30, 2021 @ 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. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. Your donation today will allow us to continue this work on your behalf. Register to attend in-person | Register to attend virtually. listeners, viewers, and readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information. That is the status quo.. The best long-run thing for the state pension system is to have inflation just at or above 2%. They would then get the same increase on July 1, 2022 and again on July 1, 2023. In the past, similar planned changes to retirement benefits have triggered waves of retirements before the changes take place, the OLR report states. As a
The states robust, short-term fiscal position is a sugar high that will pass when the federal stimulus money goes away, ODea said. The year over year increases drive up the amount paid out by Connecticuts severely underfunded State Employee Retirement System. font size, Human Resources Business Rules and Regulations. The contracts allow workers to accept the $2,500 extra payment and still retire before July 1. 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. Manager salaries have not kept up with union salaries so in a lot of cases you have mangers that are earning less than the employees reporting into them, said Melissa McCaw, the states budget director. The board has voted to approve the following cost of living increase for January 2023. You cannot be supportive of state workers and the services they provide without being supportive of the necessary funding to ensure that these positions are properly staffed, SEBAC wrote in a statement after the vote. 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 . Republican House Leader Vincent Candelora of Branford, in a statement following Thursdays announcement questioned how the raises will affect not only current contract talks with union negotiators for rank-and-file workers who want more pay, but also the work of a new task force charged with studying this issue and reporting back to the legislature., Candelora attributed the structural gulf between non-union managers and unionized employees to a vicious circle that's fueled by people at the Capitol whose baseline position is to give state employee unions everything they want.. 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. At Yankee Institute, we know Connecticut is a state with boundless opportunity, and we intend to help make our state more than a place where people are just able to make ends meet! Several Republican lawmakers decried the deal and said it would exacerbate Connecticuts fiscal woes. 2:19 pm. Michelle Lee. Part of the 2017 SEBAC Agreement between the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition and Gov. 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. He is one of the mid-career, private-sector executives to join the administration of Gov. Retired state employees receive a cost-of-living adjustment every year in either January or July depending on the employees retirement date based on the CPI-W for the previous 12 months. If inflation were 1% Then the absolute COLA would be low, but the burden on the state budget and taxpayers would be growing, because inflation under 2% leads to a real pension burden increase. Both are signs of things to come in state government or more precisely, things to disappear. House and Senate negotiators expressed optimism Monday as they began trading budget proposals, despite gaps in spending over issues such as public schools, land preservation and tourism marketing. Were losing some of our best and brightest as they seek other parts of the country where its easier to make a living. Raising minimum salary levels between 10% to 25% will give many frontline HHSC employees a reprieve from dire financial straits caused by the Texas Legislature's failure to provide across-the-board pay raises to state . Theres no way to take on the legacy of mass incarceration other than to undo it, one step at a time. Josh Geballe, the commissioner of administrative services. 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. The House, where Democrats also hold a majority, approved the package 96-52 on Thursday. Last March, in a report that received relatively little media coverage, Boston Consulting Group documented that 27 percent of the state workforce is eligible to retire before June 30, 2022, and that about three-quarters lean toward retirement. Connecticuts pension COLAs, however, are set for a change one year from now prompting concerns over a potential surge in state employee retirements. But the journey to get from here to there, and the ordering of initiatives, is very complex to think about.. More than 46,000 Connecticut state employees could soon get a significant raise -- and bonuses - thanks to a new union contract that won approval in a key legislative committee Monday. 13 Weeks . Republicans countered Friday that the raises and bonuses far outstrip what households in the private sector are receiving. 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. All Rights Reserved. GOP minority says taxpayers got a raw deal, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window). Likely, the governors spinmeisters will follow the lead of union leaders in referring to all state employees as frontline workers, although many agencies were closed to the public during most of the pandemic. Ned Lamont contracted with the Boston Consulting Group for a report of how to increase state government efficiency. The 2022 State Holiday and Check Dates calendar for State Employees. The proposed contract is generous. And Lamont reported this week that the current fiscal years budget is projected to close on June 30 with an unprecedented $3.95 billion surplus, equal to nearly 20% of entire General Fund. The minimum wage in Connecticut is scheduled to increase to $15 per hour on June 1, 2023. . "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. His predecessor, Robert J. Rinker, co-chaired a labor-management committee that addressed some of the same issues now under review. Anniversary Date (AI Date) Change for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 2271), Changes Anniversary Date from July 1 to January 1 for employees assigned to the MP, MD, SE, DM, CJ & VR, Labor units 02 & 03 pay plans, DAS General Letter 193 - Anniversary Date (AI Date) for Classes Covered by Collective Bargaining, Procedures for establishing anniversary dates for employees covered by collective bargaining agreements, Salary Increase - Cost of Living (COLA) for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 2090), Authorizes 3% Cost of Living Increase effective July 1, 2014 to employees assigned to the MP, MD, SE, DM, CJ-EX & VR, Labor units 02 & 03 pay plans, Salary Increase - Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) & Annual Increase (AI) for Associate Attorney Generals (E-Item 2002), Authorizes a 3% Cost of Living Increase and a 3% Annual Increment not to exceed the maximum of the salary grade for Associate Attorney Generals, Salary Increase - Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 1935), Authorizes 3% Cost of Living Increase effective July 1, 2013 to employees assigned to the MP, MD, SE, DM, CJ-EX & VR, Labor units 02 & 03 pay plans, Salary Increase - Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 1942), Authorizes 3% Cost of Living Increase effective July 1, 2013 to specific titles assigned to the EX pay plan, Salary Increase - Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 2091), Authorizes 3% Cost of Living Increase effective July 1, 2014 for certain employees assigned to the EX pay plan, Salary Increase and Pay Plan Adjustments for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 2147), Authorizes a Certain Percentage salary adjustment based upon most recent pay increase for certain employees assigned to the EX pay plan, adjusts the EX pay plan and effective January 1, 2016 pay increases for EX mirrors MP, Salary Increase Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for Certain Non Represented Employees E Item 2664, Authorizes 3.5% Cost of Living Increase effective July 1, 2019 to employees assigned to the MP, MD, SE, DM, CJ-EX & VR, Labor units 02 & 03 pay plans, Salary Increase Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for Certain Non-Represented Employees (E-Item 2665), Authorizes 3.5% Cost of Living Adjustment to certain employees who are assigned to Bargaining Unit 01 effective July 1, 2019,
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