And the Lion Shall Lie Down With the Lamb. Yelmini Joins Senate Republicans.
A coup of the most unexpected sort. Veteran state labor negotiator Linda Yelmini will be putting decades of knowledge to work for the Senate Republicans during the crucial legislative session that begins on January 4th. Yelmini was shoved out of state service shortly after Malloy was narrowly re-elected to a second term in 2014. Yelmini received a $325,000.00 settlement as a result of her action against the Malloy administration for its ugly manipulations.
Yelmini, who knows where plenty of bodies are buried, and her legal team found some embarrassing emails between budget chief Ben Barnes and former Malloy chief of staff Mark Ojakian. “Was it awful? Will she go quietly?” Ojakian, who learned nothing about these sorts of communications during the 2014 campaign that is the subject of a federal criminal investigation, asked Barnes in fraught text messages. The $325,000 paid Yelmini is the same amount Connecticut Democrats paid to keep 2014 campaign emails from Ojakian, Malloy and others from the state’s erratic election commission.
“When facing challenging economic times and exploding budget deficits, Connecticut leaders need to consult with people who understand specific parts of the state budget inside and out. Linda Yelmini is one of those people,” said Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano (R-North Haven), who has a contentious history with Yelmini, in a written statement. “Ms. Yelmini knows more about Connecticut’s state employee contracts than most people in state government. As OPM’s former labor relations chief, she was responsible for negotiating contracts and retirement agreements and bringing multiple parties together. I believe her expertise and 28 years of experience will be a benefit to the taxpayers of Connecticut as Republican lawmakers look to identify ways to get state spending under control without placing further burdens on Connecticut families and with the goal of avoiding further state employee layoffs. She will continue to serve as a neutral arbitrator on a number of arbitration panels which demonstrates both her knowledge of labor relations matters and fair-mindedness.”
Yelmini will work as a part-time hourly employee during the legislative session that is expected to devote considerable attention to labor contracts and the state’s generous employee benefits.