Lawmakers Expected to Vote on UConn Raises

03.04.2016
Issues & Policies

State lawmakers are expected to vote soon on a proposed contract for 1,900 non-teaching professional employees at the University of Connecticut.
Gov. Malloy and legislative leaders have called for a vote on the contract proposal which would guarantee five consecutive years of salary increases for a total of $94 million.
The contract was negotiated six months ago, well before the latest projections of steeper state budget deficits.
First in a series of labor contracts to be considered this year—more than 30 state employee contracts will expire in June—CBIA believes it must be rejected because of the fact that Connecticut cannot afford it, and because of the precedent it would set.
The pending contract for the 1,839 members of UConn’s Professional Employees Association calls for raises ranging from 3% to 4.5% each year over the next five years—an additional cost estimated around $93.9 million, according to the legislature’s nonpartisan Office of Fiscal Analysis.
If either legislative chamber rejects the proposal by March 9—as the governor and most legislative leaders have urged—it will not go into effect.

CBIA believes the contract must be rejected because Connecticut cannot afford it, and because of the precedent it sets.

Last week, the Appropriations Committee rendered a split decision on the potential raises.
Senate members of the committee rejected the proposal as contained in SR-4 (by a 6-6 vote, with one Democrat joining Republicans in voting against it).
But House members approved the duplicate HR-3 in a 24-19, near-party-line vote with most Democrats approving and Republicans rejecting.
However, the contract came under more intense scrutiny when the Office of Fiscal Analysis revealed the state was heading toward a $266 million deficit this fiscal year, and $900 million gap the next.
The governor said that “agreements negotiated between labor and management must reflect our new economic reality. This contract, which was negotiated last year, does not.”
The governor has called on legislators to vote on every employee contract and arbitration award.


For more information, contact CBIA’s Bonnie Stewart (860.944.8788) | @CBIAbonnie

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