The Great Debate: Are CT State Employees Unfriendly or Just Stressed?

Are Connecticut State Employees Rude?

Are Connecticut State Employees Rude… or Just Overwhelmed? I found this discussion fascinating. It’s always interesting to see a large group of people perceive an issue in wildly different ways. I’ve definitely had run-ins where CT state employees were rude to me, and my internal response was: Well, H-E-Double hockey sticks to you, madam or sir.” (The lighting in some of those buildings makes it hard to tell which.)

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This whole thing kicked off when someone in the Connecticut Reddit community posed a very simple, very spicy question: Why are state employees so aggressive and cold? The original user deleted their account, but their question lived on—and Reddit delivered.

What followed was a surprisingly thoughtful and (mostly) serious conversation. I’ve pulled some of my favorite responses below. (Note: I made light grammar fixes to the quotes for readability, but the content is all theirs.)

FlanSteakSasquatch:
You’ve got two things at play here:

1. New Englanders tend to be pretty blunt. Like it or don’t like it, plenty of us appreciate not having to play a social charade when we both just want to get something done. Get to the point and we’re happy.

2. The typical New England bluntness is more exaggerated here. The average person is more friendly than the average DMV desk-job worker. That’s a place where they mostly deal with people who want to get in and out quickly. Small talk makes the wait longer, and that’s typically seen as more rude than being to-the-point.

mikeymo1741:
You have three things at play. Your two, plus the fact that these departments are largely understaffed and underbudgeted, and people are asked to do way more than their jobs... when the unions let them. Which they don’t often. So the work piles up, and there’s always a mountain of it. The good ones try to be efficient; the ones coasting just... coast.

tsa-approved-lobster:
You have four things at play. Those three, and also the fact that when you work with the general public, it’s best to keep things simple. You never know who you’re talking to or what kind of tangent they’ll go off on. Or what three-syllable word they’ll get offended by because they don’t know what it means. Or if they’ll like your voice and get vulgar. Short, simple, and to the point.

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SwimmingSomewhere959:
You have five things at play. Those four, and also the fact that New Englanders are addicted to Dunkin. We pass eight of them in a 30-minute commute and our lizard brains can’t resist. That self-hate seeps into every part of life. If a state employee seems extra grumpy, they might’ve just caved and downloaded the app.

Throwy4444:
This is the answer. State employees in these positions are often underpaid and overworked. They deal with complaints from people—often the same ones—day after day. No one calls the state to say, “good job.” That wears down even the most optimistic person. There's often no budget for proper training or enough staff to cover the work without burnout. These jobs are hard.

LT256:
My agency has two people resolving 19,000 public inquiries a year—and that’s only 60% of their duties. The job starts at $56K and requires an advanced degree. I help answer calls when they’re both at training, and most of the callers are retirees who want to chat for an hour. Our public-facing staff are amazing at moving things along without being rude, but it’s a tough skill. Also—this is the last week of the fiscal year. All the reports, budgets, and inventories are due Monday. No extra time or staff. Do not judge a CT employee by how they act in June. Everyone is maxed out.

buried_lede:
In CT, the state agencies are getting pretty rude, actually. I’m from here.

Athenas_Return:
It’s not just the state agencies. Society in general has gotten pretty rude. People have gone feral.

FastWalkingShortGuy:
We even shorten “bless your heart” to seven letters.

arp151:
Welcome to New England. It’s strictly business unless the context says otherwise. Simple and energy-efficient.

fuzzykate:
Not sure if this helps, but I’ve found being nice and outgoing can disarm the abruptness. I’m a Midwest transplant who moved here as a teen, and the bluntness of New Englanders has become one of my favorite things. In the Midwest, everyone is “nice” and it’s impossible to tell who actually likes you. Here? If I say hi in the grocery store and it annoys someone, I see it on their face. It’s honest in a way the Midwest isn’t. Also, for what it’s worth—my experience with town employees here in Tolland has been awesome. :)

I was genuinely blown away that 90% of the thread took this question seriously. If you know Reddit, and especially CT Reddit, you know that’s not always the case. This topic clearly struck a nerve—or at least a point of real curiosity. From a personal perspective, I’ll think differently the next time I interact with a state employee. A lot of the points made here hadn’t crossed my mind before.

I’m changed now. I’m ready for you, State of Connecticut employees.

Except the mutants at the Social Security office. You still owe me for whatever happened 12 years ago. That place is a disaster.

P.S. I don’t even remember what happened 12 years ago—just that it was wildly unpleasant. At the time, there was a sign warning people not to spit on the teller. Which means someone tried. That’s uncalled for, folks.