Gov. Ned Lamont made a special guest appearance at the AFSCME Council 4 Biennial Conference this weekend, pledging continued support for public-sector unions along with another round of wage increases.
While the governor has not officially announced whether he will seek another term, his message to the unions sounded like the start of a campaign.
Speaking to nearly 200 union members gathered at AFSCME’s “Rise Up Connecticut & Organize” convention at the Mystic Marriott in Groton, Gov. Lamont proudly stated, “Every year that I’ve been here you’ve gotten a raise, and every year I’m here, you’re going to get a raise,” in remarks posted on X.
Throughout his tenure, Gov. Lamont has been supportive of unions, particularly with state employees who have received a 33% raise in wage and step increases since 2019. However, his promise of future raises may further exacerbate Connecticut’s current budget discussions.
On April 22, the Appropriations Committee passed a $55.7 billion biennial budget that exceeds the state’s constitutional spending cap by $215 million. Despite Connecticut possibly losing hundreds of millions in federal aid, the Lamont administration is not preparing to tighten the state’s fiscal belt.
This has inflamed fiscal conservatives’ frustrations. In a statement to Yankee Institute, Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding (R-Brookfield) blasted Gov. Lamont’s promises, calling the move “Unaffordable. Unsustainable.” He also urged the governor to “be a good negotiator for the taxpayers.”
“Gov. Lamont should be finding efficiencies in state government and being financially prudent in order to lower our taxes and our fixed costs,” Sen. Harding told Yankee Institute. “Gov. Lamont should be doing what is best for the taxpayers instead of what is best for the unions and for his political party.”
“Fiscal moderation has officially left the State Capitol and that’s very bad news for working-class families struggling with taxes and soaring electric bills,” Sen. Harding warned. The governor’s message to those families, he said, is clear: “Go pound sand.”
Gov. Lamont was not alone at AFSCME’s conference. Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz also made an appearance, sitting on a “civil rights” panel alongside Rep. Bobby Gibson (D-Gibson), Rep. Derell Wilson (D-Norwich), and union brass, where they likened the “fight for workers’ rights” with the Civil Rights movement, and discussed “concrete strategies for creating more inclusive unions and ensuring all worker’s voices are heard.”
The union conference, a three-day affair packed with cocktail hours, dancing until midnight, and workshops like “Creating Change from Within: Union Voices in Public Office” and “Roadblocks to Progress: Paving the Way for CT for All,” offered a full agenda aimed at strengthening union control. (Roadblock is the latest term big labor and far-left progressives use to attack Connecticut’s fiscal guardrails.)
Other sessions had speakers sharing stories about workplace victories “won through solidarity,” pitching strategies for “new employee outreach,” and explaining how AFSCME PEOPLE — the union’s political action committee — uses member contributions to “directly impact legislation that protects workers’ rights” and to “help elect pro-worker candidates across Connecticut.”
They also plotted new ways to flex their political muscle at the State Capitol. And judging by Gov. Lamont’s remarks, the unions won’t have to flex very hard.
The governor’s promise comes just days after it was revealed he had already negotiated new “healthy” raises for Connecticut State Police troopers — a deal that grants a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment on July 1, plus step increases adding another 2% for most troopers.
Gov. Lamont’s administration projects that trooper raises alone will cost taxpayers $6.3 million next year, and if similar hikes are extended to the rest of the state workforce — as the union clearly expects — the price tag could balloon to $130 million.
In other words, public workers get rewarded, while taxpayers get the bill.
But at the Mystic Marriott, there were no concerns about spending caps and taxpayers: it was all smiles and union chants.
Connecticut AFL-CIO President Ed Hawthorne rallied the crowd by warning that if “Trump and his billionaire buddies” return to power, workers’ rights will be under attack. Moreover, AFSCME members were coached on how to fight back against “budget constraints,” elect more “pro-worker” politicians, and ensure that the unions — not taxpayers — keep writing the rules.
AFSCME’s International President Lee Saunders, delivered remarks on how the “union’s strength comes from organizing,” adding, “When we stand tall and when we make our voices heard, we can win!” The speech was a not-so-subtle reminder that the 2026 elections are just around the corner.
If anyone needed proof that Connecticut’s government is being run for the benefit of public-sector unions rather than the people paying the bills, they found it this weekend in Groton.
Gov. Lamont’s message was crystal clear: as long as he is in office, the unions will get their raises — and taxpayers will be left stuck paying for them.
