Environment
Prevention is No Accident
Rhode Island's Public Employees Prevent Disasters Before They Strike.
Providence, South Kingstown and Narragansett, Rhode Island
February's Rhode Island oil spill in the waters off South Kingstown made national headlines. Members of AFSCME Locals 1179, 1612 and 2881 (Council 94) were applauded for their heroism. It took a disaster to thrust the skills and dedication of these workers into the public eye.
But far more important is making sure the disasters don't happen in the first place. AFSCME members are at work every day making our communities safer places to live—even if they are sometimes taken for granted by management.
At the time of the oil spill, members of Local 2881 in Providence were working without a contract—and had been since July. The governor announced the termination of the state workers' contract on the day it expired. The new contract—described by Joe Iadevaia, a Council 94 vice president, as "equitable"—settled in arbitration this March.
Locals 1612 and 1179 in South Kingstown and Narragansett have a more amicable relationship with management. Many of their members say that having a union has helped them become better workers.
Local 1612 Pres. Arthur Smith says having the union lets him concentrate on getting his job done. "It's knowing that people like our business agent, Joe Peckham, who is always there, are playing hardball for us."
Local 1179 member Franklin Recchia says having a union has meant that safety comes first. "We have the safety committee because of the union," he said. Daily life in the town garage now includes non-skid tape for high platforms and hard hats for forklift operators.
It's details like these that make it possible for the Highway Dept. to run as smoothly as it does.
"It takes a lot to run a town," says Local 1179 Vice Pres. Julie MacMullen. "Taxpayers here get their money's worth." And there's a bulletin board in the town garage showing that taxpayers, too, believe this. Letters and phone messages from citizens go up there: praise for a road well plowed, a pothole promptly fixed, roadside brush cleared. Praise for a job well done.
