Connecticut 2022 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB05441 Compare Versions

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7	7		General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5441
8	8		February Session, 2022
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14	14		AN ACT ADOPTING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE TASK
15	15		FORCE TO STUDY THE STATE WORKFORCE AND RETIRING
16	16		EMPLOYEES.
17	17		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
18	18		Assembly convened:
19	19
20	20		Section 1. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) The State Comptroller, or 1
21	21		the State Comptroller's designee, and the representatives of each State 2
22	22		Employee Bargaining Agent Coalition constituent union shall conduct 3
23	23		an estimate of the number of state employees who are expected to retire 4
24	24		in each position type at each state agency, including each agency that is 5
25	25		part of the executive, legislative or judicial branch and the higher 6
26	26		education system. 7
27	27		(b) The commissioner of each state agency shall conduct an analysis 8
28	28		of employee retention rates within the commissioner's agency. Such 9
29	29		analysis shall be compared to the state's year-to-year data as well as the 10
30	30		findings in the report entitled "The State of Connecticut Workforce: An 11
31	31		Analysis of Representation and Compensation Equity Across Gender 12
32	32		and Race-Ethnicity". Such agencies shall jointly report their analysis to 13
33	33		the Governor, the joint standing committee of the General Assembly 14
34	34		having cognizance of matters relating to public employees and the Chief 15
35	35		Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, as established in section 3 of this 16
36	36		act. 17 Substitute Bill No. 5441
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43	43		(c) The human resources departments across all branches of state 18
44	44		government, therefore encompassing all state agencies, shall develop a 19
45	45		universal exit survey with specific data points to help inform an overall 20
46	46		view of the state's workplace conditions. Such surveys shall be 21
47	47		developed, distributed and collected by agency human resources 22
48	48		departments which shall analyze the results of the surveys and report 23
49	49		to the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer. 24
50	50		Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) The commissioners of each 25
51	51		state agency shall formally engage in a strategic plan to examine: (1) The 26
52	52		positions and position types they recommend to be replaced as they are; 27
53	53		(2) the positions they recommend be replaced with a different type of 28
54	54		position because the function has changed; and (3) the positions they 29
55	55		recommend be replaced with a different position because the need has 30
56	56		changed, based on current state agency needs and current workforce 31
57	57		capacity and ability. 32
58	58		(b) The process shall involve representatives of each State Employee 33
59	59		Bargaining Agent Coalition constituent union under the savings and 34
60	60		transformation provisions of the State Employee Bargaining Agent 35
61	61		Coalition agreement. 36
62	62		Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) There shall be established a 37
63	63		Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer position to oversee a 38
64	64		transformative hiring process in state government. The Chief Diversity, 39
65	65		Equity and Inclusion Officer shall be appointed by the Governor, with 40
66	66		the approval of the General Assembly. Said officer shall report to the 41
67	67		Governor and the Equity Advisory Committee, established pursuant to 42
68	68		subsection (c) of this section. 43
69	69		(b) The commissioner of each state agency shall address its diversity 44
70	70		needs by reviewing the report entitled: "The State of Connecticut 45
71	71		Workforce: An Analysis of Representation and Compensation Equity 46
72	72		Across Gender and Race-Ethnicity" and conducting an assessment of the 47
73	73		commissioner's agency. Such assessment shall be used to determine 48
74	74		where action plans may be necessary to address any racial or gender 49 Substitute Bill No. 5441
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81	81		disparities, including a review of recruitment strategies. The assessment 50
82	82		shall include, but shall not be limited to: (1) An agency's success in the 51
83	83		last five years in recruiting and retaining women and people of color 52
84	84		into various positions; and (2) an agency's plan for achieving an 53
85	85		appropriate and fair balance in replacing vacancies left by retiring 54
86	86		employees. Each such assessment shall be submitted to the Governor, 55
87	87		the General Assembly and the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 56
88	88		Officer not later than three months of commencing such assessment. 57
89	89		(c) (1) There shall be established an Equity Advisory Committee 58
90	90		responsible for monitoring whether the assessment goals pursuant to 59
91	91		subsection (b) of this section are being met by state agencies. The 60
92	92		committee shall consist of the following members: (A) Seven members 61
93	93		appointed by representatives of each State Employee Bargaining Agent 62
94	94		Coalition constituent union, and (B) four members appointed from the 63
95	95		current task force to study the state workforce and retiring employees, 64
96	96		consisting of (i) one member appointed by each chairperson, and (ii) one 65
97	97		member appointed by each ranking member. 66
98	98		(2) The chairpersons of the committee shall be appointed by the 67
99	99		chairpersons of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly 68
100	100		having cognizance of matters relating to labor. 69
101	101		(3) The administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the 70
102	102		General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to labor shall 71
103	103		serve as administrative staff of the committee. 72
104	104		(4) The committee shall meet as required by the chairpersons of the 73
105	105		committee. 74
106	106		Sec. 4. (Effective from passage) (a) The commissioner of each state 75
107	107		agency shall provide a list of training and professional development 76
108	108		programs currently in existence within the commissioner's agency, the 77
109	109		extent of engagement of employees in those programs during the 78
110	110		previous three years, including the number of employees enrolled, and 79
111	111		the number of employees who completed such programs. The 80 Substitute Bill No. 5441
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118	118		commissioner shall also provide a description of the agency's plans to 81
119	119		create or increase engagement in such programs in the near future. 82
120	120		(b) The Labor Department shall provide a list of existing career 83
121	121		pathway programs, including high school-to-career pathway programs, 84
122	122		vocational-technical school pathways, internships and post-graduate 85
123	123		fellowships, modeled after other federal and state programs that 86
124	124		encourage the training-to-workforce or college-to-workforce transition 87
125	125		for a range of state employee classes and positions. The Labor 88
126	126		Department shall include in such list agencies participating and the 89
127	127		number of people involved in these programs. 90
128	128		(c) The Commissioner of Administrative Services shall study the 91
129	129		feasibility of developing a paid internship program for high school and 92
130	130		college students. In conducting such study, the commissioner may 93
131	131		consult with leaders of nonprofit agencies and community advocates. 94
132	132		Sec. 5. Subsection (p) of section 5-200 of the 2022 supplement to the 95
133	133		general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 96
134	134		thereof (Effective July 1, 2022): 97
135	135		(p) When such authority is not otherwise conferred by statute, the 98
136	136		commissioner shall issue orders to provide that (1) executive or judicial 99
137	137		department employees exempt from the classified service or not 100
138	138		included in any prevailing bargaining unit contract, except unclassified 101
139	139		employees of any board of trustees of the constituent units of higher 102
140	140		education, be granted rights, [and] benefits and wages, with movement 103
141	141		within salary ranges, not less than those granted to employees in the 104
142	142		classified service or covered under such contracts, or (2) retirement 105
143	143		benefits for state employees exempt from the classified service or not 106
144	144		included in any prevailing bargaining unit contract be adjusted to 107
145	145		provide retirement benefits for such employees which are the same as 108
146	146		those most frequently provided under the terms of approved bargaining 109
147	147		unit contracts in effect at the time of such adjustment. When such 110
148	148		authority is not otherwise conferred by statute, the board of trustees of 111
149	149		any constituent unit of the state system of higher education may issue 112 Substitute Bill No. 5441
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156	156		orders to provide that the unclassified employees of such board be 113
157	157		granted rights, [and] benefits and wages not less than those granted to 114
158	158		employees of the board who are covered under a prevailing bargaining 115
159	159		unit contract. Where there is a conflict between an order granting such 116
160	160		rights, [and] benefits and wages and any provision of the general 117
161	161		statutes, such order shall prevail. [Such orders shall be subject to the 118
162	162		approval of the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management. If the 119
163	163		secretary approves such order, and such order is in conflict with any 120
164	164		provision of the general statutes, the secretary shall forward a copy of 121
165	165		such order to the joint committee of the General Assembly having 122
166	166		cognizance of labor matters.] 123
167	167		Sec. 6. Subsection (g) of section 5-270 of the general statutes is 124
168	168		repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 125
169	169		2022): 126
170	170		(g) "Managerial employee" means any individual in a position in 127
171	171		which the principal functions are characterized by not fewer than two 128
172	172		of the following, provided [for any position in any unit of the system of 129
173	173		higher education,] one of such two functions shall be as specified in 130
174	174		subdivision (4) of this subsection: (1) Responsibility for direction of a 131
175	175		subunit or facility of a major division of an agency or assignment to an 132
176	176		agency head's staff; (2) development, implementation and evaluation of 133
177	177		goals and objectives consistent with agency mission and policy; (3) 134
178	178		participation in the formulation of agency policy; or (4) a major role in 135
179	179		the administration of collective bargaining agreements or major 136
180	180		personnel decisions, or both, including staffing, hiring, firing, 137
181	181		evaluation, promotion and training of employees. 138
182	182		Sec. 7. (NEW) (Effective from passage) Each state agency shall fill all 139
183	183		open positions to levels appropriated in the 2022-2023 biennial budget. 140
184	184		Each agency shall also adopt continuous recruitment practices to fill 141
185	185		critical shortage positions, as appropriated in the biennial budget for the 142
186	186		fiscal years commencing July 1, 2022, and July 1, 2023. Such positions 143
187	187		shall not require approval from the Department of Administrative 144
188	188		Services or the Office of Policy and Management in order to fill. 145 Substitute Bill No. 5441
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195	195		Sec. 8. (Effective from passage) The Secretary of the Office of Policy and 146
196	196		Management shall consult with the State Employees Bargaining Agent 147
197	197		Coalition in order to: (1) Allow all employees to continue working 148
198	198		beyond the July 1, 2022, deadline for retirement without the applicable 149
199	199		cost-of-living adjustment or retiree health care changes until one month 150
200	200		following the hiring of the employee's replacement for the purpose of 151
201	201		training and transitioning the new employee in the position; and (2) to 152
202	202		reduce the retirement incentive caused by the 2022 changes in a way that 153
203	203		would not materially decrease the savings attributable to such changes. 154
204	204		Sec. 9. Section 5-259f of the general statutes is repealed. (Effective 155
205	205		October 1, 2022) 156
206	206		This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
207	207		sections:
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209	209		Section 1 from passage New section
210	210		Sec. 2 from passage New section
211	211		Sec. 3 from passage New section
212	212		Sec. 4 from passage New section
213	213		Sec. 5 July 1, 2022 5-200(p)
214	214		Sec. 6 July 1, 2022 5-270(g)
215	215		Sec. 7 from passage New section
216	216		Sec. 8 from passage New section
217	217		Sec. 9 October 1, 2022 Repealer section
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	219	+	Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
	220	+	In Section 1(c), "and shall analyze" was changed to "which shall analyze"
	221	+	for clarity.
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220	223		LAB Joint Favorable Subst.
221		-	APP Joint Favorable
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