Nearly 60 union members arrested for closing street in Hartford

HARTFORD — Days of continuous union-led demonstrations outside and inside the State Capitol escalated on Thursday when 57 union members were arrested after hundreds of people — in support of higher pay for striking nursing home workers — closed a nearby downtown intersection.

Among those arrested in the noontime closure of Capitol Avenue was Rob Baril, president of SEIU 1199 New England, whose union represents the 1,700 striking workers who want to raise the current $17.25 per hour pay to $25. The workers say they are getting only a fraction of the $400 million they want in the two-year budget that takes effect on July 1, according to Gov. Ned Lamont and lawmakers who are finalizing drafts of the two-year nearly $51 billion budget.

In an interview after his arrest, Baril said that the current budget proposal would only raise wages to $18.25. “It’s far, far, far short of what people need to take care of themselves and their families in the state of Connecticut,” Baril said. “Everybody know that. The really upsetting part is that for the first time in a generation, Connecticut has the surplus where they can actually be picking people up. The state has to understand that if we’re going to outsource work that used to be state work — on the cheap — it’s not acceptable to outsource it at povertylevel wages, which is what they are currently doing.”

In recent years, the state has experienced multibillion dollar surpluses, but a 2017 budget agreement put sharp caps on spending, which Gov. Ned Lamont said on Friday will be adhered to in the final budget product, which could be voted upon as early as this weekend, in the shadow of the midnight June 7 legislative adjournment deadline.

“I can tell you, our group met with 1199 yesterday, senior staff,” Lamont told reporters after an unrelated event on Thursday morning. “I know we’re getting closer to a deal. We’re providing additional support for all the not-for-profits, including the group homes that’ll be significant; $100 million over the biennium for the not-for-profits. I remember the folks in the group homes everyday. They showed up. They were essential workers. We’re trying to do right by them.”

Lamont said he understands why union members are singling him out.

“I’m the guy at the end of the day, who has to put together a balanced budget that adds up,” Lamont said. “I think we’re doing the right thing by these folks.” He stressed that half the $100 million would go to group homes with unionized workers. “That’s on top of what we did last year when we trued-up everybody in terms of minimum wage, and made sure they got higher salaries. I think they’re gonna see a budget that takes into account the hard-working folks from 1199 at those group homes. I think people will get there.”

Baril disagreed, citing SEIU 1199 members who have been evicted from their apartments; worked for decades making under $20 an hour; and working seven days a week.

“My understanding is what currently exists in the budget is about $25 million in year one that’s a bonus, not a wage increase,” Baril said outside Capitol. “And then $25 million in year two that would go into wages increase. You could take a portion of that surplus and dedicate it toward human services and human needs and wages for people who are completely dependent on state funding. The state of Connecticut has a choice to make about whether it wants to legislate an end to poverty for care givers. And for the life of me, nobody can explain why that cannot happen.”

The street takeover occurred at the intersection of Capitol Avenue, Washington Street and Trinity Street. Baril and 53 other union members were arrested by Hartford Police, were not handcuffed in the preplanned act of civil disobedience, and were processed on the Capitol grounds, charged with obstruction.

Baril said that the Medicaid program that funding nursing home staffing levels is a cooperative arrangement in which the state pays half and the federal government pays half.

“My understanding is that they are leaving a $50 million federal match — that can be used to lift these people up — on the table.” he said. “They are not accepting free money from the federal government because it would exceed the spending cap. If that doesn’t explain why the spending cap is a construct that is outdated and that is an obstacle to working peoples’ progress, I don’t know what does. The point of having a surplus, I think, is that at some point, you spend it on someplace where people really need the help.”