Unions Prepare to Vote on Deal

More information on budget concessions could come this week.

More than 1,800 pink slips that were handed out to state workers could be rescinded if state employees approve a tentative agreement with the governor.

Union leaders and Gov. Dannel Malloy’s administration reached a tentative deal on a $1.6 billion concessions deal late Friday and more details could be released on Monday about the time-line for voting on the agreement.

Union negotiators hope this second chance at a deal will save state jobs.

The new looks almost exactly like the deal the unions previously rejected, with some language clarifying concerns some union members expressed about changes to their health care plan.

Union leaders said they plan to hold informational sessions for union members and admitted that they were ineffective in getting the word of the first deal out to members.

What's changed since the vote in June is how union members votes are counted.

The previous bylaws required 80 percent of members and 14 of 15 unions to vote yes. It was rejected even though 57 percent voted yes.

Last week, the unions changed the bylaws so it now takes is a simple majority.

Neither side is saying much about the agreement as the unions tackle the voting process.

"I hope state employees ratify this agreement, but I am assuming nothing,” Malloy said in a written statement released on Friday. “If they ratify it, the vast majority of layoffs and painful spending cuts can be undone."

According to the Web site for the State Employees Bargaining Agent Agent’s Web site, voting schedules have not been determined, but NBC Connecticut has learned that union leaders want the process wrapped up by mid-August.

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