VSEA is pleased to share this short video with you, featuring Dave Bellini, a 30-plus-year Corrections employee. Like all Vermont state employees, Bellini can only dream these days about the way Governor Shumlin used to treat state employees, as opposed to the way he is treating them today, which is not good. VSEA is currently fighting to convince the Governor to abandon his proposed service and job cuts in favor of adopting new revenue ideas like the ones VSEA has developed and submitted.
Remember AOT employee Ed Olsen? He recently wrote a terrific letter to the Governor about how hard it is to make ends meet on his current salary, and how unfair it is for the State to ask frontline employees to open up their contracts and give back again. VSEA Policy Analyst Adam Norton researched how much Ed stands to gain if the State honors the wage increase it bargained with VSEA members in good faith. Here’s Adam’s analysis.
The administration has proposed a mix of painful budget cuts, and some new revenue, to close Vermont’s $112 million current services budget gap. Unfortunately, the governor’s budget “balance” between new revenue and devastating cuts is heavily skewed toward the latter, with less than $30 million in new revenue being dedicated to funding current services budget gaps.
Community High School of Vermont educators are at the State House today to testify in front the House Education Committee. They will be continuing to make the educators’ case not to severely cut the program’s funding, while also urging lawmakers to to help them ensure the program is being fully utilized.
VSEA members are urged to call the Sergeant At Arms (802-828-2228) today and deliver this simple message to members of the House Education Committee (listed here): “I am a state employee. No cuts to the Community High School of Vermont. Thank you.”
