Blunt-Talking Labor Negotiator, Fired By Malloy Aides In 2014, To Advise Senate GOP
Some high-ranking people were angry at Connecticut's blunt-talking labor relations chief, Linda Yelmini, by the end of her 28-year career as a top state management employee.
Yelmini was in charge of the state Office of Labor Relations, which handles negotiations with unions representing tens of thousands of state employees, for well over a decade until top officials in the Democratic administration of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy fired her in late 2014.
The episode was immortalized in texts between Malloy budget director Ben Barnes and then-chief of staff Mark Ojakian fretting about whether she would "go quietly" or "create problems." The answers turned out to be no and yes.
Yelmini fought her firing in a high-profile series of State Employees Review Board hearings and won a $325,000 settlement from the administration in late 2015.
Read more: http://www.courant.com/politics/hc-lender-yelmini-20161217-column.html