State employee unions and Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell have reached a preliminary agreement on reducing labor costs by $637 million over the next two years. Included in the deal is union wage concessions, but the Governor offered a two-year no-layoff period in return. The agreement also creates a retirement incentive package expected to prompt 3,000 departures. The resulting position openings will be used to place employees whose jobs are cut in reorganization decisions. The agreement, with union wage concessions, is key in tackling a $8.7 billion state budget deficit over the next two years. The agreement has yet to be approved, and must be passed by both union members and the State General Assembly.
See "Rell, Unions Have Plan To Reduce Labor Costs", Jon Lender and Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, April 6, 2009