‘Abracadabra!’ Labor Pulls Rabbit From Governor’s Hat: Reducing The State’s Dependence On Private C

CSEA SEIU Local 2001 issues the following statement in response to today's press release by Governor Malloy and Lieutenant Governor Wyman on the state’s monthly 'labor situation' report for January 2016:

“Today's jobs report highlights the fact that Connecticut's economy is struggling to make progress at a time when the Malloy administration is proposing large-scale layoffs and budget cuts that threaten to wipe out the 11,000 jobs created this year.” said Stephen Anderson, President of CSEA. “While the governor says he won't be satisfied until everyone who wants a job has one, we have to ask ourselves if it makes sense to add thousands of public employees to the unemployment rolls, not to mention the thousands of private sector workers will be laid off when cuts to public spending slow down the economy.”

Though the Governor continues to say that there is no ‘magical fix’ for this budget shortfall, there are options his administration has so far refused to explore, especially reducing the state’s dependence on private consultants, which have the real potential to dramatically increase the efficiency of state government.

“While the administration claims they have prioritized improving Connecticut's business climate, in practice that has translated into a favoritism of business interests over middle-class families who continue to struggle. This is evident in the governor's recent budget proposals which seek to preserve the state's use of expensive private consultants while implementing harsh layoffs and service cuts for middle-class families. The Malloy administration has so far failed to produce an accounting of its use of consultants, the known cost of which exceeds $1 billion every year.” said Roland Bishop, CSEA Secretary Treasurer. “This really is the proverbial ‘rabbit in the hat’ that the governor referenced during his town halls. If the state were to reduce this systemic waste across all departments, cost-effectiveness evaluations indicate that the potential long-term savings would be hundreds of millions of dollars annually.”

While all solutions for the budget shortfall will need to utilize a multi-pronged approach, we know austerity will not bring about the desired results.

“Over the past several years, austerity budget plans like the one proposed by Governor Malloy have been implemented in many states across the country with disastrous effects for the public and the economy.” said William Buhler, co-chair of CSEA’s legislative action committee and member of the Better Choices for Connecticut coalition. “We should not repeat the mistakes of other states by cutting jobs and services for the middle class in order to protect big business. As it is, spending in many areas of the economy has fallen to an all-time low, which is a key indicator that a contraction of the economy is possible. Under these conditions, governments have a responsibility to maintain spending to mitigate against a potential recession. If the state were to cut spending along the lines of what has been proposed by the governor, that could push us over the edge into a recession.”