A strike of 2,100 group home workers, scheduled for 6 a.m. Friday, was called off late Thursday just before midnight as the union agreed to a 2-year deal with significant pay increases.
But the eleventh-hour deal came too late for the 200 group homes to avoid having to relocate hundreds of intellectually disabled residents.
In a statement issued Friday morning, Gov. Ned Lamont said the tenative agreement, which still has to be ratified by union members, “is a positive step forward for the workers as they will receive pay increases and more support.”
The $184-million, two-year state funding package will lead to significant wage increases and improved benefits for workers, the majority of whom are Black and Latina women, SEIU District 1199 New England, the state’s largest health care workers union, said in a press release early Friday morning.
“We believe this additional funding will resolve the open contracts. We have made substantial progress toward our goals for a $20 minimum wage, with major progress on retirement and other benefits,” said Rob Baril, the union’s president.
All day Thursday, group home operators had changed plans on the fly, pushing back deadlines to relocate residents until the last possible minute, with vehicles ready and destinations set.
Barry Simon, the chief executive officer of Oak Hill, a nonprofit which operates 70 of the affected homes, said that about 150 residents were moved to nursing homes Thursday night and it could take between 24 and 48 hours for the nursing homes to discharge them back to Oak Hill’s care.
In addition to their return, the agreement allows Oak Hill to “bargain in good faith to settle the contract with our employees,” Simon said.
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from News https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/All-sides-hail-deal-that-averted-group-home-16224983.php
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