Ct. Workers Win Judgments in Union Financial Transparency Lawsuit, Put State Unions on Notice

Court victory shows Connecticut public employees have recourse when their unions ignore financial reporting laws.

September 1, 2026, Hartford, Conn.—In a significant transparency victory, two Connecticut public employees have secured court judgments that require their unions to comply with financial reporting laws they had previously ignored. The litigation carries broader implications for state public-sector unions and the more than 100,000 workers they represent.

In February, corrections officer Ryan Bilodeau and criminal justice professor Earl Ormond filed a lawsuit to enforce a 1957 Connecticut law that requires certain public-sector unions to file annual financial reports and make those records available to union members. The statute also allows members to request that the state audit those reports.

But most unions to which the law applies had not filed the reports for many years. And in 2025, the Connecticut Department of Labor openly acknowledged it did not enforce the law.

Three months after Bilodeau and Ormond sued their unions, the labor commissioner reversed course and notified union officials about their legal obligations, created a new online portal for them to file financial reports, and clarified that they must also provide hard copies to union members and hold an official meeting to discuss them.

Now, Bilodeau has secured a judgment requiring his union, AFSCME Local 391, to comply with Connecticut’s financial reporting law for the most recently completed fiscal year and every year going forward.

Ormond has secured a separate judgment requiring his union, the Congress of Connecticut Community Colleges (4Cs), to comply with  federal financial reporting requirements under the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act for the most recently completed year and all future years.

If either union fails to comply in the future, it would risk violating not only the applicable financial reporting law but also a court order.

Plaintiff and Attorney Reaction to Transparency Victory

“This is what we wanted from the beginning: transparency,” said Bilodeau, who had struggled to get clear answers from AFSCME Local 391 officials about the union’s finances. “I pay dues every paycheck, and I shouldn’t have to fight to get basic answers. I hope this court victory sends a message to Connecticut union officials that their members have a right to know where their dues money is going.”

Ormond, a retired law enforcement officer who oversees the criminal justice program at Connecticut State Community College – Naugatuck Valley, became concerned about how his union was using his dues after it promoted and passed a Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions resolution against Israel that he viewed as antisemitic.

“Union members deserve transparency, especially when our dues may be used for political causes we don’t support,” Ormond said. “I felt like my dues disappeared from my paycheck while I was left in the dark. This judgment helps to show workers across Connecticut that they can demand the transparency the law requires.”

“Ryan and Earl demanded that their unions follow the law—it’s that simple,” added Nathan McGrath, president and general counsel at the Fairness Center, the nonprofit public-interest law firm representing Bilodeau and Ormond. “Their lawsuit helped prompt the state to remind unions of their reporting obligations, and the judgments they won have sent an even clearer message to union officials across Connecticut: follow the law, or your members may take you to court—and win.”

Plaintiffs and Fairness Center attorneys are available for comment. Please contact us at media@fairnesscenter.org or 844.293.1001 to schedule an interview. 

###

The Fairness Center is a nonprofit, public interest law firm offering free legal services to those hurt by public-sector union officials. For more information visit www.FairnessCenter.org.