(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that pursuant to the ratification of the agreement his administration reached on the 35 collectively bargained contracts with the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition (SEBAC), his administration has transmitted the contracts and accompanying details to the Connecticut General Assembly for its consideration.

“I want to thank our partners within SEBAC, the 35 bargaining units, and our staff for negotiating a responsible and fair deal for our unionized state employees,” Governor Lamont said. “The parties entered these discussions knowing the stakes. The state has to live within its means just like the families and businesses we serve and represent, but this is also a unique situation where state employees did extraordinary work during a paradigm-altering pandemic, inflation has concurrently increased, and the state workforce could potentially undergo significant changes due to retirements and uncompetitive wages. 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. This agreement provides a clear message to our state employees that we value their contributions to our residents while also providing a solid platform from which to recruit the next generation of public servants to our ranks.”

The wage contracts were tentatively agreed upon in early March and were ratified by the respective unions this week. By statute, the contracts now go before the state legislature.

These wage agreements include 2.5% general wage increases and step increases retroactive to July 1, 2021, and then prospectively for each of July 1, 2022, and July 1, 2023. In the fourth year, the parties will meet again to negotiate on wages. Also, these agreements include special lump sum payments ($2,500 for active employees who were with the state before March 31, 2022, $1,000 for those employed on July 15, 2022, and a pro-rated bonus for part-time employees). The cost estimates for these new wage contracts are still under development, as eligibility determinations are being finalized across all affected funds. Those estimates will be reviewed by the Office of Fiscal Analysis when the final package is submitted to the legislature.

For non-represented staff, legislation was enacted last year that directed equity in salary adjustments between represented and non-represented employees. The action to designate the extension of these wage increases to non-represented staff will require an item approved by the Office of Policy and Management. Additional reviews related to compression and inversion issues for non-represented staff will be conducted over the next several months. These reviews will be conducted in collaboration with executive agencies.

Additionally, the issue of hazard or pandemic pay was not part of these negotiations and will be resolved as part of another agreement.

This press release was made possible by: