Standing Up for Public Services in Tough Times
IT’S ABOUT VALUE – Council 8 members Patricia Taylor (Local 3707) and Jon Apati (Local 2517) participated in the special caucuses on promoting public services during the 2008 International Convention.
Photo Credit: Thor Swift
The election of a President who shares our values creates an opportunity to promote the role of government in our communities.
By Jon Melegrito
As our nation struggles through a grave economic crisis, poor fiscal conditions are expected to get even worse in the months and years ahead. With state and local revenues hurting as a result of this national economic downturn, there is increased pressure to make significant budget cuts in public services at a time when they are needed most.
But these challenges — vital services at risk when demand for them is growing — create great opportunities to tell our story and the critical value of the jobs we do and services we provide. The presidency of Barack Obama opens new possibilities of getting the public on our side. Today, we have a President who supports us and stands with us in making our communities better places to live, work and raise a family. Obama has promised that his administration will provide $10 billion in relief to state and local governments hardest–hit by the housing crisis in an effort to curtail cuts in vital services like health education and infrastructure. He has also outlined plans to create 3 million jobs to boost the economy.
These measures demonstrate Obama’s own belief in government and the workers who make it happen. “Government should do that which we cannot do for ourselves,” he said during the campaign, “protect us from harm and provide a decent education for our children; invest in new roads and new science and technology.”
As illustrated by the following stories of two AFSCME Ohio locals, we are already building support for public service through our new public communications project. Delegates to the 2006 AFSCME International Convention adopted this initiative as part of the “Power to Win” plan to rebuild the union and make it stronger to meet the challenges of the future. In 2008, convention delegates launched the latest phase of this project in special job-specific caucuses where they learned a three-pronged, values-based approach to talking about public services: 1) speak to the public interest, not our self interest; 2) talk about how public services support citizens’ shared values; 3) highlight the unique role of government and public services.
This is an historic time to tell our story — one that is rooted in the important services we provide as we perform jobs in communities all across this nation.
Akron, Ohio
In Akron, the mayor’s attempt to turn over the city sewer system to privateers provided members of Local 1360 (Council 8) with an opportunity to work with the community and uphold the public interest.
Last February, members learned of Mayor Don Plusquellic’s (D) “sewers for scholarships” scheme. He wanted to sell or lease the city sewer system to a private company and use part of the proceeds for college scholarships for high school graduates in Akron. Union leaders met with the mayor to express their concern about the potential loss of jobs and offer alternative funding ideas for the scholarships.
Meanwhile, a grassroots organization — Save Our Sewers (SOS) — convened town hall meetings. It became apparent that the citizens themselves cared about public health and the environment and wanted control over any decision regarding public utilities. They didn’t want private firms to control sewer and water rates, considering they control oil and gas prices.
Local 1360 members participated actively in these discussions. “I was encouraged just listening to how strongly people felt about this issue,” recalls David Head, a dispatcher with the city’s sewer maintenance for 17 years. “It gave us an opportunity to talk about how this public utility has served our community well.”
A Voice at the Ballot Box. From these meetings, Akron citizens agreed with the union that giving up control of this vital public service would have a lasting effect. “The final decision, we all agreed, must be in the hands of the voters — not lobbyists, politicians and contractors,” Head points out.
The community aimed the issue of public ownership toward the November ballot. To succeed, the organizers needed thousands of signatures on a petition — at least 10 percent of the city’s voters.
In coalition with SOS, and with resources provided by the International Union, AFSCME spearheaded the campaign with radio ads and TV spots, phone banks and door-to-door blitzes with 10,000 flyers. Under the headline “Keep the Public In Charge: Keep Akron’s Sewer System Accountable,” the flyer underscored the importance of public ownership in providing the long range commitment that protects citizens from profit-driven firms and, consequently, skyrocketing sewer rates.
Strong Support. “The people got the message,” recalls Stephanie Bonner, a parking meter worker and a member of Local 1360. She knocked on doors along with 70 other co-workers and community activists. “The residents readily signed the petition. Some even volunteered to gather signatures in their own neighborhoods. It was exciting.”
Alarmed by the people’s initiative, the mayor responded with a ballot issue of his own, essentially empowering him to sell the sewer system.
One month before the November 4 election, Local 1360 collected close to 6,000 signatures. With the issue on the ballot, the union and the citizens of Akron won impressively, by a 2-1 margin, despite being outspent by the privateers.
Head attributes the campaign’s success to the message projected to the media and the public. “We knew it was a bad idea to turn over the sewer system to privateers because we’re better at operating it,” Head explains. “But we later realized that it’s not just us, the union, versus the mayor. It’s really all of us — the citizens of Akron — fighting back against the mayor because we truly care about our quality of life and we don’t want privateers messing it up.”
The battle is not over. But the community, led by Local 1360, is poised to challenge the mayor’s next move.
Lakewood, Ohio
A suburb of Cleveland, Lakewood is full of small town charm, and home to all of the 225 members of Local 1043 (Council 8).
In November 2007, the city elected a new mayor, Edward Fitzgerald (R), who vowed to improve public safety, but he never explained how he was going to pay for it. Soon after assuming office, he started making service cuts. First, the entire city health department. Then, mobility services for seniors. Next, city code enforcement officers. So far, nearly two dozen members have lost their jobs.
Facing more layoffs, members of the union decided to “flex union muscle,” says Jerry Branco, Local 1043 president. “But we needed the public on our side.”
They created a flyer titled “Lakewood: A Good City Going Bad?” to alert the community about the cuts. Instead of focusing on the union or the members’ jobs, the flyer’s message addressed how the services the city provides are crucial to the community’s quality of life. Then, local members went door-to-door, handing out 15,000 flyers. “We sat down with our neighbors on their front porches and shared our stories,” recalls Pat Slife, who works for the waste water treatment plant. As a result, the union generated hundreds of calls to city council members. “Now they know that Lakewood residents are watching,” adds Slife.
This was also the first time union members did any kind of community outreach that forced the city council to back down. Says Branco, “We projected the right kind of message — that cutting back on vital public services puts our community on the wrong track.”
SPREADING THE WORD – City of Akron AFSCME Local 1360 members were joined by Council 8 members from Local 1229 representing Summit County Employees, and OAPSE Local 4 members representing Akron area school employees, during a Saturday walk of Akron wards to gather signatures for a petition to save the city sewer system.
Photo Credit: Joe Weidner
