Connecticut DSPs to Strike for Wage Increases on May 7

According to the CT Mirror:

“A strike organized by workers who care for the disabled is back on for May 7. 

In March, the worker’s union, SEIU 1199 New England, held a rally at the State Capitol to announce that some 2,500 workers from nine organizations intended to strike on April 18, seeking increased state funding and higher wages.

These employees work for private agencies in group homes and day programs that receive state funding, with the majority of that coming from the state Department of Developmental Services.

[…]

[State] Office of Policy and Management Secretary Ben Barnes has presented legislators with a proposal that would raise wages to $14.75 per hour and provide a 5 percent raise for workers currently earning more than $14.75, effective Jan. 1, 2019. The proposal would cost the state about $11.4 million in fiscal year 2019 and $22.8 million in subsequent years. The total annual cost is double that, but the federal government would provide a match through Medicaid. 

[…]

Union spokeswoman Jennifer Schneider said the union supports Barnes’ proposal and workers voted to re-issue strike notices because state lawmakers haven’t voted on the proposal.

[…]

The CT Community Nonprofit Alliance represents eight of [the] nine agencies [in which employees have announced the intention to strike]. 

‘The residents of groups homes where strike notices have been issued need high skilled care, 24-hours a day from dedicated staff that they and their families rely on, and the Alliance will continue advocating for funding increases to avert job actions that would interrupt that care,’ said Gian Carl Casa, the alliance’s president and CEO.”

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