Sec. 31-51o. Continuation of group health insurance for employees affected by relocation or closing of covered establishment. Exceptions.

1. Whenever a relocation or closing of a covered establishment occurs, the employer of the covered establishment shall pay in full for the continuation of existing group health insurance, no matter where the group policy was written, issued or delivered, for each affected employee and his dependents, if covered under the group policy, from the date of relocation or closing for a period of one hundred twenty days or until such time as the employee becomes eligible for other group coverage, whichever is the lesser, provided any right of such employee and his dependents to a continuation of coverage for up to seventy-eight or one hundred fifty-six weeks, as the case may be, as required by section 38a-538 or 38a-554 shall not be affected by the provisions of this section, and provided further the period of continued coverage required by said sections shall not commence until the period of continued coverage established by this section has terminated.
    
2. The provisions of this section shall not apply to those employees who, upon the relocation or closing of a covered establishment, choose to continue their employment with the employer at the new location of the facility.
    
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, any contractual agreement arrived at through a collective bargaining process that contains provisions requiring the employer to pay for the continuation of existing group health insurance for his affected employees in the event of a relocation or closing of a covered establishment shall supersede the requirements of this section and, in the event of a conflict, the contractual provisions shall be deemed to be controlling.

Workplace Laws