Long labor dispute affects mayors conference

PROVIDENCE - A national mayors’ conference that was to showcase Rhode Island’s capital city lost its luster when top members of President Barack Obama’s administration backed out because of a yearslong labor clash between the city and firefighters.

Vice President Joe Biden was the scheduled headliner for the summit for big-city leaders starting Friday. But the White House says it respects picket lines and won’t take sides in labor disputes.

Providence Mayor David Cicilline has been involved in the dispute over health care contributions and staffing levels for firefighters since taking office in 2003.

Internet Resources:
U.S. Conference of Mayors
Providence Mayor’s Office
Providence Firefighters Local 799

Four years later, Cicilline was forced to resign as co-chairman of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s presidential campaign in the state after the union threatened to picket a Clinton fundraiser.

In 2004, then-Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards skipped a scheduled stop in Providence, also to avoid crossing a picket line.

Cicilline, though disappointed by the decision, said he would attend the summit, even as the union said it would remain quiet if he skipped all events with Obama administration officials.

“I will continue to stand up and fight for the people who elected me,“ Cicilline said. “I have one set of bosses: the residents and the taxpayers of this city.“

He called on union members to approve his latest contract proposal, which would require a 15 percent copay for current firefighters and give them a retroactive pay hike. It also cuts vacation time, eliminates one paid holiday and raises the minimum service requirement to collect a pension.

He said the firefighters union was the lone city labor group that doesn’t contribute to its health care.

Local 799 president Paul Doughty said the union doesn’t object to paying for health care but insists the contribution be either a flat rate or tied to firefighters’ salary. He said he welcomed the attention given to the labor dispute.

“We are taking the opportunity because it’s a national spotlight to say, ‘Hey, this guy isn’t giving us a fair shake,“‘ Doughty said.

Other administration officials who had been scheduled to attend included Attorney General Eric Holder, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke.

University of Rhode Island economics professor Edward Mazze said the White House withdrawal was “another example of Rhode Island getting literally a black eye in terms of national attention.“

The 77th annual meeting of the United States Conference of Mayors is scheduled to run though Monday. It was seen as a revenue lift for Providence, which is struggling financially.

The chief executive of the mayors’ conference, Tom Cochran, said he was disappointed by the White House’s stance, especially because labor disputes are common in big cities. He said he was impressed that no other mayors were skipping the event because of the unrest.

“Every time you go to one of these meetings, somebody is out front protesting about this or that,“ he said.