J.
Michael Downey honored by the RI Labor History Society
Mike
Downey was inducted in the Rhode Island Labor History hall of fame at the 26th
Annual Labor History Society banquet.
Mike is well-known in Charlestown for his service as a Charlestown Town Council member and his work on many local boards and commissions. He currently chairs the Tax Assessment Review Commission.
Mike is well-known in Charlestown for his service as a Charlestown Town Council member and his work on many local boards and commissions. He currently chairs the Tax Assessment Review Commission.
Mike
is also a well-known statewide figure as the head of Rhode Island’s largest
public worker union, Council 94 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).
Mike came out of the rank-and-file. He was an AFSCME member working as a plumber at the University of Rhode Island. Mike was President of Local 528 at URI for 28 years.
After the death of long-time AFSCME President Tom Chellel, Mike ran for and won election as Council 94’s president in 2006 and won re-election in 2010.
Mike has led AFSCME through some of its most challenging times since public employees won the right to bargain collectively over 40 years ago as conservative governors and General Assembly leaders and a bad economy cut into the ranks of public workers and sliced up the benefits of retirees.
It’s
fun to be a leader when things are going well and you go into each campaign
with a reasonable hope for victory.
After the death of long-time AFSCME President Tom Chellel, Mike ran for and won election as Council 94’s president in 2006 and won re-election in 2010.
Mike has led AFSCME through some of its most challenging times since public employees won the right to bargain collectively over 40 years ago as conservative governors and General Assembly leaders and a bad economy cut into the ranks of public workers and sliced up the benefits of retirees.
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| Mike Downey receives his citation from RI AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Maureen Martin |
It
sucks to be a leader when times are tough, but that’s when you can tell the
difference between truly great leaders and those who only look that way because
of opportunity.
Mike
was honored for fighting against long odds and sticking to the fight when others
caved in and negotiated givebacks their members could ill afford.
Although
several thousands of AFSCME members chose early retirement when Governor
Carcieri presented them with the choice of getting out now, or facing draconian
cuts to their retirement benefits, Mike looked for new ways to build
membership.
Of
particular note was AFSCME Council 94’s success in organizing Newport and
Tiverton bus drivers working for the notoriously anti-union, British-based
private school bus company First Student.
Mike
becomes only the second Charlestown resident to be inducted in the RI Labor
History Hall of Fame. The other is my wife Cathy who was inducted in 1989 while
she was Women’s Rights Director of AFSCME in Washington, DC. Cathy currently serves as President of the RI Labor History Society.
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| IBEW's Mike D'Amico (right) receives his citation from brother electrician Pat Brady (left) |
The
other honorees at this year’s RI Labor History Society annual banquet were Mike
D’Amico of Electricians Local 99 (and one of the funniest stand-up comic honorees
in recent memory) and only the second wife-and-husband team, Ray and Mary Jo
Pouliot who are both retired teachers and leaders in the National Education
Association of Rhode Island (NEARI).
The Rhode Island Labor History Society was founded 26 years ago by firebrand and labor scholar Dr. Scott Molloy and other labor historians. It is one of the oldest and is easily the largest such organization in the United States dedicated to keeping the history of organizing working people alive and vibrant today.
The Society is governed by a volunteer board of present and past labor activists. Membership is open. Visit their website for more information, including how to join.
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| Scott Molloy MC's the 2013 annual dinner |
The Society is governed by a volunteer board of present and past labor activists. Membership is open. Visit their website for more information, including how to join.