Judicial Branch lays off six locally as latest wave of cuts begins
The state Judicial Branch, faced with a $79 million budget reduction for the upcoming fiscal year, began its latest wave of layoffs Thursday, delivering notices to employees within six different job classifications.
In this second round of layoffs, which a branch spokeswoman said would continue into next week, 113 people will be released from their jobs, bringing the total layoffs to date to 239.
The branch did not release information by district, but sources in the local legal community said at least six people in the New London Judicial District received layoff notices, including a probation officer, a family relations counselor, an intake, assessment and referral specialist from the bail commissioner’s office and three case flow coordinators.
The laid off employees had the least seniority within their job classifications.
The officials who delivered the layoff notices gave the employees information packets and the option to take off the rest of the day, the sources said. The layoffs are not effective until June 23, which ends the last pay period in the current fiscal year.
Chief Court Administrator Patrick L. Carroll III had sent a letter to all employees of the branch Tuesday indicating the layoffs would begin Thursday.
An additional 126 employees received notices on April 15, and the branch has said as many as 600 could lose their jobs.
“The total number of layoffs will be determined once the legislature adopts a budget for FY 17,” the judicial branch said in a news release.
The branch employs about 3,700 full-time workers in 70 locations, including 43 courthouses. Its total employee count, including judges and part-time employees, is approximately 4,200.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s latest midterm budget proposal recommends that the Judicial Branch’s $577 million budget for the 2017 fiscal year, which begins July 1, be reduced by $79 million.
Under the proposal, $57 million is required to come from employees, and Carroll indicated Monday in a letter to Malloy and legislative leaders that the 14.8 percent reduction would have “unprecedented and catastrophic consequences.”
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