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HARTFORD — A pay raise deal for nearly 45,000 state workers passed out of committee on Friday and now heads to the Senate and House floors for a vote.
In March, Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration reached an agreement with the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, representing 35 government unions, that gave state employees another wage increase.
Under the deal, state government workers will receive a 2.5% wage hike and a step increase for the next fiscal year beginning July 1.
“Our state employees each and every day dedicate themselves to serving the people of Connecticut in many ways, including taking care of our most vulnerable, educating our children, protecting our safety, and many other responsibilities upon which we rely,” Lamont said. “This agreement continues the current wage pattern, reflecting our need to ensure the retention of our best employees while recognizing the need to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars.”
But House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora and Senate Republican Leader Stephen Harding argued that Democrats are ignoring their obligation to Connecticut taxpayers by rushing to approve a pay raise they claim will cost $150 million in the first year.
“Union bosses get the first seat at the table in Democrats’ world, leaving anyone hopeful for spending adjustments or tax relief to contend for the scraps. By embracing the bad practices of the past, they are putting at risk the long-term fiscal stability of Connecticut. Every resident should be concerned about this reckless approach, especially considering that we’re less than a decade removed from the fiscal crisis that nearly paralyzed our state government.”
Costing more than $1.8 billion in its first four years, the 2022 five-year SEBAC agreement notably excluded wage increases in its final year. However, the contract obligated the state to revisit salary negotiations after January 2024 through a mechanism known as a “reopener.”
According to SEBAC, the average union member has benefited from an almost 15% wage increase under the 2022 deal, not including the wage and step reopener in the fourth year.
Government spending on state employee pay reached a record high last year, totalling $5.41 billion, according to the Connecticut Office of the State Comptroller. Payroll spending increased by $60 million from 2022 and by an additional $800 million over the previous five years.
Several Republicans on the budget-writing committee warned on Friday of recent data suggesting a $220 million deficit on the state’s horizon, and cautioned that lawmakers were increasing spending without a way to fully pay for the new contract.
“We did not plan for nor foresee the unplanned deficit that we currently have in the budget. We still don’t have all the numbers, so we don’t know the full impact the contract will have on the budget,” State Rep. Tammy Nuccio, R-Tolland, said. “Are we going to have to make cuts to other programs or other departments to be able to account for this?’
But Democrats countered that the money for the SEBAC wage reopener had already been built into the state’s budget.
“There is absolutely no reason to not support this agreement because the money is already in the bipartisanly approved budget from last year,” State Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, said.
SEBAC applauded Friday’s favorable vote by the Appropriations Committee.
“Put simply, there’s a cost to not investing in the professionals who provide public services — the cost of not educating our students, not maintaining our roads and bridges, not providing mental health and addiction services,” SEBAC spokesperson Drew Phelan said. “The majority of the legislature’s budget-writing committee understands the need to invest in our quality of life and these contracts are a step in that direction.”
The contracts now move to the full General Assembly for a final vote and are expected to be approved.