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BCG documented that the sclerotic state bureaucracy takes an average of 33 weeks to hire a new employee. And that total is expected to grow considerably between now and July 1. So, it is a safe bet that Lamont will sign a juicy new wage contract with SEBAC. Watching is one of those who spoke against it, Sen. Craig Miner. The Charter provides commonsense reforms to make Connecticuts government work for its residents. 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. 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. As a State of Connecticut employee you may be entitled to a host of benefits that are not only attractive, but also may be portable should your career . Amazon and others in the private sector have made it very easy to envision what that future could look like, if you think about online shopping or online bank services, Geballe said. Josh Geballe, the commissioner of administrative services. Fazio cited a study by the American Enterprise Institute, which found that Connecticut state employees on average are paid 5.6 percent less in salary than a private sector employee with similar qualifications. State finances also are being supported this fiscal year and next by about $3 billion in emergency federal pandemic relief. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. As many as 13,000 state employees will be eligible for retirement by July 2022, according to the state Comptroller's office. The package was previously approved by the House. Union members have engaged in an all-out campaign of organizing and mobilizing to make our pay a priority for state leaders. December 30, 2021 @ 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. 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. Despite Lamonts claims to the contrary, it is highly likely that he will award state employees significant future wage increases as well as a generous modification of cost-of-living adjustments to their pensions after their retirement. He said DAS has capable managers pushing for change, such as Hermes and the states chief information officer, Mark Raymond. Connecticut Property Taxes In Every Town: Who Pays The Most? Required fields are marked *. The virtually inevitable pay hikes and favorable benefit modifications will then be classified as hardship pay to reward for employees for their phantom frontline service.. The long session, as non-election years are called in Hartford, will be centered around the biennial budget. The deal is now final since the state Senate and House approved it. The state is so intractable about its longterm bureaucratic practices. 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. But more than that, this is a necessary contract so that we can hold on to the best and brightest.. 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Opinion: Gov. Some Republicans have said the hefty bonuses are only an election-year stunt from Lamont, a Democrat, to shore up his standing with his labor base. The agreements, which unions ratified earlier this spring, are retroactive to the start of this fiscal year, which began last July 1. What can be done to lower home heating bills? Bonuses are prorated for part-time employees. There are also new bonuses: $2,500 next month and an extra $1,000 in mid-July. Social Security has announced that they will be granting a cost of living increase of 8.7% for 2023. 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. As a He could outsource functions, but the state already pays outside providers an enormous amount about $1.4 billion annually to nonprofits. The agreement would cost the state nearly $1.9 billion over four fiscal years, according to nonpartisan fiscal analysts. Ned Lamont previously touted. Watch Live at 7:00 PM: The U.S. and the Holocaust, a film by Ken Burns | Screening & Panel Discussion . 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. 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. state of ct employee step increase 2022; state of ct employee step increase 2022. In addition, full-time workers would receive a $2,500 bonus in mid-May and another $1,000 bonus in mid-July. 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. 1 Week Subscription - $2.99 / 7 Days. There is ample evidence that this is a fair contract, a reasonable contract, an affordable contract, she said of Connecticuts wage hikes. 13 Weeks . 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 coalition, which represents most state employee unions excluding the state police, added that, It is a critical step in resolving the current staffing crisis that is the consequence of decades of disinvestment and austerity., Lamont spokeswoman Lora Rae Anderson said, Were happy the House has passed the SEBAC agreement, and we are hopeful the Senate will do the same.. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. 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! The agreements, which unions ratified earlier this spring, are retroactive to the start of this fiscal year, which began last July 1. Part of the 2017 SEBAC Agreement between the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition and Gov. 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. 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. The alternatives are suboptimal. Privacy Policy. Currently, the only way to advance in most agencies is for someone to retire, leaving a specific job open. But Gov. Photos: Iconic Landmarks To Visit Across CT. Were working really hard to digitize everything we do.. But two union leaders say they see the states expectations of a significant retirement wave as well-founded. The raises would cost the town about a half . People know not to bring paper in here, said Josh Geballe, a former IBM executive and tech entrepreneur. 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. Dannel P. Malloy takes effect. There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. 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: The minimum 2 percent COLA also means that during years in which inflation was low, they still got a boost over the inflation rate. Deserves got nothing to do with it, Rep. Thomas ODea, R-Ledyard, said, citing the famous dialogue Clint Eastwoods Western outlaw uttered in Unforgiven, the 1992 Academy Award-winning film. Part-timers would be eligible for prorated bonuses. Ned Lamont administration to attract more people to stay and move into these jobs, and to make their salaries more in line with unionized workers. Were hemorrhaging workers right now, DAgostino said. Ned Lamont speaks at a news conference at Connecticuts Beardsley Zoo, in Bridgeport, Conn. March 29, 2021. Based on the statutes governing Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) for CTRB members, the Connecticut Teachers' Retirement Board will be granting COLA as follows. 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. Democratic governors in New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia are temporarily suspending raises for state employees or freezing pay until they can better understand the fiscal impact of the pandemic, but, thus far, Connecticut state employees are still scheduled to receive a second pay increase, projected to cost taxpayers $353 million. Private-sector employees can only dream of having that, said Sen. Henri Martin, R-Bristol. EVENT: Mark Pazniokas will sit down with Gov. Several Republican lawmakers decried the deal and said it would exacerbate Connecticuts fiscal woes. /. 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. Ned Lamont believes it will keep critical state workers on the job. Employees who retire after that date will get less lucrative retirement benefits. Thirty percent intend to leave the state upon retirement. SEBAC employees who are employed before March . Examples abound. I would say that largely we havent seen that partnership happen, but we continue to have the door wide open, Glidden said. 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. will call the "2022 Changes") go into effect as of July 1, 2022(the "Effective Date"). The proposed contract is generous. "I come out of the private sector. building a betterand more civilConnecticut to live, work, and play. 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. Connecticut Public Radio | It could be because it is not supported, or that JavaScript is intentionally disabled. We hope their support inspires you to donate so that we can continue telling stories that inform, educate, and inspire you and your neighbors. The contracts allow workers to accept the $2,500 extra payment and still retire before July 1. The one thing we know about Ned Lamont or any Democrat, for that matter is that he will not fight the unions. 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. Outside his 15th-floor office in a downtown Hartford complex is a big empty space once occupied by file cabinets. The easiest way out of the crisis is to keep employees on board by offering them generous pay and benefit incentives. Some of the features on CT.gov will not function properly with out javascript enabled. 1 week of full access. 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. The $2 billion agreement also includes special lump-sum payments of $2,500 for active employees who've . The contract is not a done deal. The CREATES report noted that 8,000 employees are eligible for retirement before July 2022 and identified 200 opportunities totaling $600 to $900 million of potential value., **Ken Girardin contributed to this article**, So of you retire prior to October 2021 and receive Your Cola 9 monthe later in July 2022 , will you receive above the normal 2 percent since inflation Is hIgh. Republicans countered Friday that the raises and bonuses far outstrip what households in the private sector are receiving. Geballe said the administration has a vision of where to go with technology, primarily by offering consumers and businesses a digital portal to state government. Meanwhile, too much of the states work still is done on paper, and the information that is collected digitally cannot be easily shared among agencies, Geballe said. In addition, full-time workers would receive a $2,500 bonus in mid-May and an additional $1,000 bonus in mid-July. We felt one of the most efficient ways and equitable ways to make a dent in this challenge was to go back and provide those same increases to the managers that had already been given to our union employees.. 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. Thats when more stringent limits on state retirement benefits, negotiated as part of a 2017 concessions deal with unions, take effect. (Sorry for the caps, wont let me shift), Hope McKiernan CT State Employees Get Scheduled Raise Amid Economic Turmoil State employees covered by unions got a 3.5 percent pay raise and two percent step increase as the state looks at massive budget deficits. The contracts allow workers to accept the $2,500 extra payment and still retire before July 1. Tier II is a non-contributory defined benefit retirement plan for most members. 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. Ned Lamont contracted with the Boston Consulting Group for a report of how to increase state government efficiency. The raises do not apply to employees in the legislative and judicial branches or higher education. 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. 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. Virtually everyone in the state knows the situation and feels it is unfair. Government bureaucracies are notoriously resistant to change, layered with the accretion of rules, processes, union contracts, all contributing to a workplace culture. The year over year increases drive up the amount paid out by Connecticut's severely underfunded State Employee Retirement System. 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. Hartford lawyer Daniel Livingston, chief negotiator for the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, or SEBAC, estimated that going with one-time bonuses and a smaller 2.5% annual cost-of-living raise saves the state about $150 million over the next decade. 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. building a betterand more civilConnecticut to live, work, and play. Marc has a Master of Fine Arts degree from Western Connecticut State University. Some changes already have come, pushed by Nicholas Hermes, a West Point grad who is the statewide human resources director at DAS, hired in 2016. Fazio said it reflects the pull unions have on state government, and that taxpayers will end up footing the bill. With only 41 weeks remaining to replace retiring employees, the Lamont administration is fast approaching a severe manpower crisis. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. We have three years to plan for that, Geballe said. The State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition represents 35 different bargaining units and more than 40,000 state employees. If youre going to get a bonus, youve got to stick around with us for a while, said Rep. Jay Case, R-Winsted. listeners, viewers, and readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information. 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). "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. 0:36. Critics say the deal is too generous and could lead to future tax hikes. 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. The raises will cost the state $13.3 million and the bonuses $2 million. In 2015, Connecticut paid $1.7 billion to 49,111 retirees, according to the Comptroller's Open Pension website. Union leaders say the workforce is ready, if wary. 10:27 pm, When will REtirees see the 6% in pensions im tier 2, TO vinny, you get The first increase 9 months after you retire, 60% of CPI W. As a federal EPA employee recently told the Washingtonian in a piece about the Trump administration, I fully intend to outlast these people.. 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. Geballe is commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services, the blandly named agency at the heart of the state bureaucracy. The 2022 State Holiday and Check Dates calendar for State Employees. Geballe said he just renewed his registration on-line. SEBAC employees who are employed before March 31, 2022 would also get a $2,500 bonus. On top of that, most workers would "step" into a higher pay grade, adding an extra 2% to most raises. 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. Ned Lamont in Hartford on May 3. The legislature's Appropriations Committee endorsed significant raises and $3,500 in bonuses Monday for about 46,000 unionized state employees. As we go into a time period where we expect a significant number of retirements, we want to make sure that we can attract and retain top talent across all of our agencies whether in management or non-management positions, McCaw said. But overall, as agency heads told Geballe as he made the rounds in January and February, the states hiring process still is cumbersome, with rarely updated job classifications that are numerous, narrowly drawn and can require their own tests. 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. Thermo Fisher Scientific bought the company the same year. Ned Lamont previously touted the agreement as a way to retain state employees amid a wave of potential retirements. Julia Bergman is a former reporter with Hearst Connecticut Media Group. Does not automatically renew. Theres no way to take on the legacy of mass incarceration other than to undo it, one step at a time. State retirees receive minimum 2 percent COLAs per year regardless of the inflation rate and a maximum of 6 percent or 7.5 percent, depending on their retirement tier. The [nonprofit] industry pegs the inflationary loss its taking on these payments at $460 million per year, according to the CT Mirror. Thats because state governments coffers are flush with cash as never before. It is unsustainable and, more plainly, unjust. Its, Well, thats the way weve always done it. . 2016 CT.gov | Connecticut's Official State Website, regular The House, where Democrats also hold a majority, approved the package 96-52 on Thursday. The agreement calls for 2.5 percent general wage increases and step increases retroactive to July 1, 2022. According to the Office of Legislative Research in their analysis of a potential retirement wave, COLAs for new retirees will match the CPI-W during years it is 2 percent or less. . 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. But Osten said the agreements are essential to maintain a state workforce that is at its smallest size since the 1950s, an argument Lamont has made as well. 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 newest class of state police trainees will be selected from a pool of candidates who were recruited on social media and applied and initially screened online. What will our elected officials be working on to improve policy outcomes for Connecticut residents? There are nine classifications for custodians, 12 for assistant attorneys general, and a whopping 221 for program directors. About 1,700 management-level state employees will receive pay raises, an effort by Gov. CT Gov. When the CPI-W rises above 2 percent, those retirees will receive either 2 percent or a percentage of the rate of inflation, depending on how high the rate rises. This proposed contract is a raw deal for the working people of this state, Sen. Ryan Fazio (R-Greenwich) said. 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. In a bill drafted . The Senate gave final approval by a 22-13 vote on a plan to give unionized state workers a set of raises and bonuses. Dannel Malloy included a provision to change the COLAs for state employees who retire after July 1, 2022. Republicans argue the SEBAC package will lead to big deficits in a few years -- and tax hikes. They are our people, who we count on each day to make us safe, she said. The bargaining units ratified the agreement earlier in the week, and it now it heads to the state legislature for consideration. Find State Employee Benefits, Union Contractions, Equal Employment Opportunity Information, Tuition Reimbursement . They also cover the next two fiscal years and potentially 2024-25 as well. The Lamont administration, labor leaders and other supporters of the increases have said they believe unions could have gotten even larger raises had they rejected the states offer and gone to arbitration. Get CT Mirror emails in your inbox daily. Fazio said that it reflects the pull unions have on state government and that taxpayers will end up footing the bill. CONNECTICUT The state Senate gave final approval to the raise and bonus package for state employees. The Office of Fiscal Analysis estimates the package will cost the state $1.87 billion over four years. The full General Assembly is expected to vote on it as early as this week. 2023 The Conneticut News Project. 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. More than 3,400 state employees have retired or have filed written intention to retire this year, but that number is expected to increase before July 1. 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. 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. Connecticuts pension COLAs, however, are set for a change one year from now prompting concerns over a potential surge in state employee retirements. That will be followed by 2.5 percent raises on July 1, 2022 and July 1, 2023. 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. The agreement includes: 2.5% general wage increases in each of fiscal years 2022, 2023, and 2024. The formula used took 60% of the increase in the Consumer Price Index ( CPI-W) up to 6% and . Republicans countered Friday that the raises and bonuses far outstrip what households in the private sector are receiving. It includes 2.5% raises for four straight years that would be retroactive to July 1, 2021. CT Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. The $2,000 payment will only be available to employees who were hired or appointed before June 30, 2018. 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. In the past, similar planned changes to retirement benefits have triggered waves of retirements before the changes take place, the OLR report states. Corporate Support: Advertising & Sponsorship, saves the state about $150 million over the next decade. Watch Live at 7:00 PM: The U.S. and the Holocaust, a film by Ken Burns | Screening & Panel Discussion . And while some criticized the bonuses, the Hamden lawmaker and others say they would save the state money over the long haul. Theres no way to take on the legacy of mass incarceration other than to undo it, one step at a time. Photos: Iconic Landmarks To Visit Across CT. In the past 10 years, the number of management-level state employees has dropped from 2,000 to 1,400, with nearly all of them choosing to leave their posts to join bargaining units and another 60 petitions currently pending, McCaw said.

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