Hartford, CT – Security officers who protect state buildings in Hartford, including buildings that house Homeland Security, Social Services and Revenue Services, voted today to authorize a possible strike. The strike authorization is in response to a failure by the officers’ employer to make pension contributions required by the state contract, and the company’s attempts to intimidate workers who are engaging in lawful union-organizing activities.

“It is disgraceful that when hard-working people try to talk to each other about improving their work conditions, employers like SOS Security respond with intimidation and harassment,” said Kurt Westby, Director of 32BJ SEIU in Connecticut.

The subcontracted security officers, employed by SOS Security, earn as little as $9.56 an hour, which forces many to rely on taxpayer-funded healthcare and other public assistance.

With more than 120,000 members in eight states and Washington, D.C., including 4,500 in Connecticut, 32BJ SEIU is the largest union of property service workers in the country.