New Britain - Gov. Dannel P. Malloy showed some willingness Wednesday to restart contract talks with state union leaders to avert mass layoffs, but said he doesn't see the point unless they loosen their strict bylaws governing contract votes.

"I don't think there's a whole lot to talk about," Malloy said during a news conference at the construction site of a new downtown New Britain police station. "Having a round of negotiations about a subject matter that can't be rectified doesn't make a whole lot of sense."

Leaders of the state's 15 public-sector unions asked the governor this week to reopen talks on a concessions deal that could avoid the planned layoff of roughly 6,500 state workers.

The layoffs are the governor's budget-cutting alternative to a concessions deal with the unions that fell apart last month when it failed to achieve ratification, despite getting 57 percent of the rank-and-file vote. Under the longstanding bylaws of the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, contract changes need 80 percent approval and affirmative votes by 14 of the 15 unions that represent about 45,000 state workers.

"In most instances, if you get 57 percent of the vote you get elected," Malloy said, suggesting a "majority" threshold for union contract approval.

The union coalition recently agreed to consider changes to its bylaws that would apply to future contract agreements, although not retroactively to the agreement that failed. That deal was to provide $1.6 billion in savings to state government over two years.

Malloy told reporters that he will likely have someone from his administration meet with the union coalition. He repeated his willingness to make "clarifications" to the language of the agreement that was voted down, if such changes could make the deal more palatable to skeptical union members.

Coalition spokesman Matt O'Connor said Wednesday that union leaders are still discussing potential adjustments to the bylaws and that a decision on the matter could be weeks away. The coalition wants to begin talks with the Malloy administration in the meantime, he said.

"Given how much is at stake for the economy, for the critical public structures upon which the economy depends and for our members and the services they provide, we think time is working against all of us," O'Connor said.

About 150 layoff notices had been issued as of Tuesday, and another 90 are expected to go out by week's end, according to the Office of Policy and Management.

The state legislature set an Aug. 31 deadline for the unions to reach a new deal with the administration.

The earlier deal promised no union layoffs for four years in exchange for a two-year pay freeze followed by three years of 3 percent pay increases. The agreement would have also raised health insurance co-pays and the retirement ages for some worker. It also mandated a preventative care regimen for workers to obtain lower pay rates.

j.reindl@theday.com