Governor Rell Supports Volunteer Efforts of State Employees 

Red Cross Trains Hundreds

Release Date: August 14, 2007
Release Number: BRI-01-08

By Philip Mikan
Connecticut Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security

After Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans, people all over the United States wanted to rush to the aide of their fellow Americans. During that time, the newly formed Connecticut Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (DEMHS) worked closely with the Office of Governor M. Jodi Rell to mobilize Connecticut's State Employees.

Within an hour after Governor Rell sent an e-mail to all state employees, over four hundred people had stepped up to be trained as Red Cross Disaster Service Volunteers.

Governor Rell later stated, "The willingness of state employees to do whatever it takes displays much compassion, generosity and spirit."

The American Red Cross quickly ran up their training division and immediately began offering courses with a large focus on shelter operations. The Red Cross trained more than 1,700 Connecticut residents during that training surge for hurricane relief.

Most volunteers found the process for becoming a volunteer quite simple with their employer support. It required filling out a simple application, allowing the Red Cross to conduct a background check and completing the required training.

Since Governor Rell's call for interested volunteers in September 2005, over 800 state employees have been trained by the American Red Cross to be certified volunteers. Employees were allowed to attend the initial training without loss of pay.

The support of the Governor and State has not wavered since then! The Governor recently signed Public Act 07-3 which gives a state employee who is a certified American Red Cross disaster service volunteer up to 15 working days each year, rather than 14 calendar days, to participate in Red Cross specialized disaster relief services without loss of pay or accrued leave time. The law requires the leave must be approved by the employee's supervisor and requested by the Red Cross.

Last Modified: Tuesday, 14-Aug-2007 15:43:32