CONNECTICUT - Workers’ Rights

Definition of agricultural worker under state law:

Conn. Agencies Regs. § 31-222-1 defines agricultural labor for purposes of unemployment compensation.

Wages and Overtime

Minimum Wage

• Connecticut has a state minimum wage law. (Conn. Gen. Stat.§ 31-76b, 31-76c, 31-76i)
• Minimum wage is currently $14 effective July 1, 2022, through May 31, 2023.
• The minimum wage rate will increase on June 1, 2023 to $15.00  (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 31-58 (i))
•  Annual indexing will begin January 1, 2024 and it will be based on the June-to-June change in the employment cost index for wages and salaries of all civilian workers.
• Agricultural workers are covered by the state minimum wage, but with some exceptions.
• Agricultural employees between the ages of fourteen and eighteen shall be paid a minimum wage of not less than eighty-five per cent of the minimum hourly wage. (CONN. GEN. STAT. §31-58a)
  • Exception: Agricultural employees between the ages of 14 and 18 who work for employers with fewer than eight workers at any one time during the preceding calendar year must be paid at least 70% of the hourly minimum wage. (CONN. GEN. STAT. §31-58a)

Overtime

• Connecticut has a state law regarding overtime pay. (Conn. Gen. Stat § 31-76b, 31-76c, 31-76i)
• Agricultural workers are excluded from the state overtime law. (Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 31-76i(k))
• Agricultural workers are exempt from the workweek established in sections 31-76b to 31-76j. (Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 31-7j, § 31-76 i(k)).

State Enforcement Agency

Connecticut Department of Labor, Wage and Workplace Standards Division

Website: http://www.ctdol.state.ct.us/wgwkstnd/forms-wwsInstruct.htm 

Occupational Safety and Health

Workers’ Compensation

• Agricultural workers are covered by the state workers’ compensation law with no exceptions.  Employers are required to cover agricultural workers to same extent as all other workers. (Conn. Gen. Stat. §31-275(9)(A)).

State Enforcement Agency:
Workers’ Compensation Commission 

Website: https://wcc.state.ct.us
Relevant Forms: https://wcc.state.ct.us/download/forms.htm

Field Sanitation

• Connecticut has a state law regarding field sanitation. (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 19a-36), (Conn. Agencies Regs. §§ 19-13-B53 and 19-13-B54)

State Enforcement Agency:
Environmental Health Section, Regulatory Services Branch, Department of Public Health, Hartford, Connecticut

Website: https://portal.ct.gov/DPH/Communications/About-Us/Regulatory-Services-Branch

Pesticide Safety

• Connecticut has a state law regarding pesticide safety in agriculture. (Conn. Gen. § 441 Pesticide Control)
• Suspected pesticide poisoning is not a required reportable illness for health care providers.

Federal Enforcement Agency:
U.S. Department of Labor, Worker Protection Standards 

Website: https://www.dol.gov/whd/ag/ag_fieldsan.htm

Right to Join Unions and Collective Bargaining in Agriculture

• There is no provision (or judicial interpretation of a provision) in the state constitution that grants farmworkers the right to join and organize labor unions free from retaliation or to engage in collective bargaining with their employers.
• There is no state statute that grants agricultural workers the right to join and organize labor unions free from retaliation (such as being fired, demoted or disciplined) or to engage in collective bargaining with agricultural employers. There is a specific exemption for agricultural workers from collective bargaining. (Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 31-101(6)).

State Legal Services Organizations

Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut
http://www.slsct.org

Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Inc. (based in Maine)
http://www.ptla.org