On June 16, the manicured lawns outside Gov. Ned Lamont’s Hartford mansion will serve as the stage for a union-backed protest.
Organized by the Connecticut AFL-CIO — the state’s largest labor union — the demonstration is designed to pressure the governor into approving the legislation (S.B. 8) that would grant unemployment benefits to workers after just two weeks of striking.
It’s not a protest against injustice or layoffs — it’s about giving unions a new weapon in negotiations between employees and employers. If workers can walk off the job and still collect a check after two weeks, it’s not a strike anymore — it’s a state-sanctioned policy to prolong labor disputes, with employers forced to fund the very disruption aimed at undermining them.
Adding to the absurdity, Gov. Lamont won’t even be home for the spectacle. The governor will be in France from June 15-17, attending the 2025 Paris Air Show as part of a state business delegation on a mission to promote Connecticut’s aerospace industry and recruit international investment.
Nevertheless, the CT AFL-CIO has been trying to galvanize supporters to attend the rally, posting a call to action on social media. Meanwhile, the union suggests S.B. 8 is “pro-worker legislation” — and that Gov. Lamont, “with just the stroke of a pen,” could “make a real difference in the lives of working people.”
Additionally, the unions declare that strikes are merely a “last resort,” and no worker should ever have to choose between “standing up for their rights and putting food on the table.” However, their solution to pass out unemployment checks for those who voluntarily stop working would have considerable impacts on the state’s economy and cost-of-living.
Not to be outdone, the Connecticut American Federation of Teachers (AFT) joined in, signaling its support on its website to mobilize union members, saying, “[S.B. 8] would level the playing field for union members standing up to employers who refuse to resolve disputes at the bargaining table.”The AFT didn’t stop there. With the bill already passed by both chambers of the legislature, the union warned that “Governor Lamont is threatening to veto it.” And if he does, they said, “[H]e would be siding with corporations over working people.”
Their marching orders were simple — “it’s time we show our strength at his mansion and urge he sign Senate Bill 8 into law.”
After weeks of trolling the governor on social media and churning out press releases with complaints about his supposed loyalty to “corporate profits,” the unions are now staging a full-blown hissy fit.
With their message falling flat, since Gov. Lamont has indicated he would veto the bill, they’ve resorted to street theater at the governor’s mansion — even though he won’t be home to see it.
Desperate for leverage, they’ve even dredged up former AFL-CIO President Lori Pelletier, who is now publicly demanding a quid pro quo. She’s reminding Gov. Lamont that back in 2018 — when she was still in charge — the union endorsed his campaign. Apparently, union support isn’t free. It comes with an invoice. And the payment is S.B. 8.
The CT AFL-CIO wants the bill signed immediately. The picket outside Gov. Lamont’s mansion isn’t about grassroots pressure — it’s a show of force, demanding obedience under threat of public humiliation. Step out of line, and you get smeared as a servant of “corporate CEOs” — a laughable insult aimed at a Democratic governor who’s spent years bending over backward to appease the unions.
Strikes were never meant to be easy. That’s the point. The risk of lost income is what forces both sides to the table. If workers can count on government assistance to carry them through a prolonged strike, the entire purpose of collective bargaining is undermined. The strike becomes a low-risk tactic rather than a last resort — shifting the cost of the disruption onto the very employers being targeted.
Signing this bill will effectively turn the state’s unemployment insurance program into a union welfare fund, giving labor leaders a new advantage at the bargaining table with the full weight of government behind them.
It’s not about helping working families — it’s about using state power to permanently tip the scales in favor of unions that already dominate Connecticut politics.
If the governor wants to show he’s in charge and not big labor, there’s only one responsible move: veto the bill to prevent looting of a fund that was never meant to subsidize union work stoppages.
Gov. Lamont has to make a choice. He can either cave to the mob outside his gates and give the unions another handout or veto this legislation and draw a much-needed line between real worker protection and political extortion. If he chooses to do neither the bill will automatically become law.
