Lamont Reaches Agreements with 10 Unions While Raises Remain Delayed

The article covers Governor Ned Lamont’s push to lock in tentative four-year contracts with ten more state employee unions. He’s trying to mend fences with labor groups while a bunch of pay raises still sit in limbo.

These deals kick in retroactively from July 1. They promise a 2.5% annual cost-of-living adjustment and step increases for most employees.

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Nearly 20,000 workers would feel the impact. We’re talking about people in state agencies, public universities, and health systems.

Statewide deals move to close the rift with labor

Gov. Lamont rolled out these four-year tentative contracts, hoping to steady staffing and budgets across Connecticut. The agreements cover everyone from clerical and administrative staff to correctional officers and education professionals, including folks at UConn and UConn Health.

His administration says they’re trying to reinvest in public services. But let’s be honest—there’s still frustration since plenty of raises haven’t actually landed in paychecks yet.

The clock’s ticking, too, with the legislative session wrapping up in May. These deals matter for payrolls and local services, whether you’re in Hartford, New Haven, Stamford, or Bridgeport.

Lamont’s already hammered out similar settlements with other labor groups. For example, there’s a four-year deal with a 4,000-member maintenance union.

Local 478 of the Operating Engineers got a separate agreement for a 4.25% annual raise. On top of that, three Judicial Branch units snagged a one-year, 2.5% COLA and a step increase through arbitration.

State police troopers landed a comparable raise for this fiscal year. Still, more than half of Connecticut’s 35 bargaining units are stuck working under contracts that expired last July.

That means eight months of earned raises haven’t shown up yet. Union leaders and the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition keep pushing for faster bargaining and wage parity.

What the deals cover and what remains unsettled

The four-year agreements are retroactive to July 1. They extend to a broad mix of state workers, including mid-level administrative staff, clerical workers, correction officers and supervisors, vocational and technical teachers, other education professionals, accountants, transportation planners, child welfare social workers, and non-teaching professional staff at UConn and UConn Health.

This scope covers units whose jobs stretch across both urban centers and rural towns. That means operations in cities such as Hartford, New Haven, New Britain, Waterbury, and Danbury all feel the impact.

Lamont’s team points to a 2.5% annual COLA and step increases as key features, with steps usually tacking on about 2 percentage points. The deals aim for budget stability over four years.

Some GOP lawmakers say the raises match or even beat private-sector trends. Unions push back, insisting the state needs to reinvest in staffing and public services to actually recruit and keep the workforce that’s needed in places like Stamford, Bridgeport, Meriden, and Groton.

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Beyond pay, the administration’s still negotiating remote-work rules that started during the pandemic. They’re trying to strike a balance between flexibility and what public service actually requires.

Lamont’s office says talks are still happening. Any tentative agreement needs approval from lawmakers before the May 6 deadline, so towns like East Hartford, Manchester, Milford, and Torrington all have a stake in what happens next.

Union leaders say pay raises are just one piece of what’s needed to keep qualified staff, especially with ongoing recruitment headaches and shifting benefits. They warn that without steady investment in wages, healthcare, and staffing, public services in Glastonbury and Norwich could fall behind what people actually need.

As negotiations play out, residents in Hartford and Stamford are watching for changes in payroll timing and service levels. Communities across Norwalk, Bridgeport, and Waterbury are hoping for better staffing and more stability down the road.

The next few weeks will show whether lawmakers sign off on these settlements before the session ends. The outcome will shape Connecticut’s fiscal and governance landscape for years—at least, that’s the hope.

Here is the source article for this story: Lamont strikes deals with 10 unions, but many raises still overdue

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