Contract negotiations between the Office of Labor Relations and A&R continue. The state and the union have made some progress at the table with respect to a variety of contract language issues. The leadership teams of both parties have had extensive talks and those discussions have lead to a shared understanding of the issues, and in some instances, we appear to have found some common ground. Language is important as it is contract language that establishes working conditions (think telework, AWS, and how overtime is calculated as examples). While we cannot reveal with any specificity the topics being discussed, we can report that negotiations over language are going well and we remain engaged with the State on these language issues.
Substantive negotiations over wages have yet to occur. However, we have sensed the environment and realize that these wage negotiations will be anything but routine. If you are unaware, last week, on March 27th, Governor Lamont announced that more than $150 million of federal funding allocated to Connecticut was suddenly being terminated by the Trump administration. These grants were wide ranging, funding essential public health, mental health, and addiction services. The $150 million hit will be felt the most at CT-DHMAS and CT-DPH. From the perspective of the collective bargaining table here in Connecticut, Washington DC seems distant and remote. But the fact is the sudden termination of these grants has had a direct impact to the state budget to the tune of $150 million.
Further complicating matters: the potential for additional, sudden cuts to Connecticut's Federal funding still remains, which only serves to increase uncertainty of the state budget. In a nutshell - the potential for further Federal funding cuts has given pause to our counterparts at the negotiations table. While we cannot say with any degree of certainty where these turn of events will lead, or what will be the final result of our contract negotiations, we do know that fiscal uncertainty on the side of the employer can only constrain contract negotiations. We dislike these uncertainties as much as you do. We can even say that our counterparts representing the state at the bargaining table also dislike these uncertainties. Regardless, uncertainty regarding the state budget has suddenly materialized, a result of decisions being made in Washington, DC. We pass this information along to you, our membership, because an informed membership is essential to a strong union. While these circumstances are somewhat unique, our goal at A&R remains the same: negotiating a fair contract for our members. Despite any hurdles we may encounter along the way, we are dedicated to that cause.