Frank J. Montanaro, president of the state AFL-CIO, tells the crowd of 2,500 that the governor, "all he's been doing since he got elected is demonizing the unions."

08:50 AM EDT on Thursday, June 2, 2005

BY SCOTT MAYEROWITZ
Journal State House Bureau

PROVIDENCE -- Thousands of union members massed in front of the State House yesterday afternoon to show solidarity and demand respect from Governor Carcieri.

Journal photo / Connie Grosch

Nicholas J. Capobianco Jr., of Cranston, a compliance coordinator for the Governor's Comission on Disabilities, takes part in a union rally at the State House yesterday. Capobianco said he's been a state employee for 30 years.

But the real underlying message was that Carcieri is not the person they want in office and it is time to replace him -- and his supporters -- with those friendly to labor.

"There is a lesson for today: It matters who you vote for," said Marcia Reback, president of the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals. "There's going to be a test in November 2006. . . . Those few of you out there who voted for Don Carcieri are going to get a makeup test."

Frank J. Montanaro, president of the state AFL-CIO, told the crowd to "dig in" and make sure they and everybody they know are registered to vote.

"All he's been doing since he got elected is demonizing the unions," Montanaro said of Carcieri. "We're going to give you recommendations to vote for certain candidates and why you should give thumbs down to others."

Montanaro has a personal reason to be upset with the governor. In November, his son Frank A. Montanaro -- an 18-year state representative -- lost his seat to James F. Davey, a Cranston Republican backed by Carcieri and Cranston Mayor Stephen P. Laffey.

(Davey, who has sponsored legislation to dramatically alter the state's pension system, and Laffey -- a longtime foe of the unions -- were also targets at yesterday's rally.)

After attacking Carcieri, the unions provided an alternative: Lt. Gov. Charles J. Fogarty.

"At times you may feel like you don't get any respect. I'm here to tell you that I value the job you do each and every day," said Fogarty, who is term-limited and gearing up to challenge Carcieri in 2006.

There were many other politicians at the rally yesterday who were described as "good friends of labor." They included former Rhode Island Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, Democratic secretary of state candidate Guillaume de Ramel, and at least 26 members of the House and 12 senators.

Carcieri's spokesman, Jeff Neal, said the event "was more about politics than it was about economics."

"The governor has worked hard over the past several years to address state employee concerns and to provide them with the pay raise he believes they deserve," Neal said. "The governor has repeatedly said that he respects the work that state employees do every day."

The "Rally for Respect" was anything but a grass-roots effort. Bus after bus dropped off union members who quickly picked out various T-shirts and preprinted placards from stacks of boxes. Capitol Police Chief Stephen G. Tocco and event organizers estimated more than 2,500 people.

The event even had a raffle. Just for showing up, people got a chance to win a night out on the town: a stay at the Westin, two tickets to a show at the Providence Preforming Arts Center and a $100 gift certificate to Capriccio restaurant.

At times, the rally got downright nasty. Scott Malloy, a professor at the University of Rhode Island, said he was sick of "the rich" pushing unions around "in order to bring down the taxes of the wealthy." He called the governor "that shifty bum."

Stan Israel, vice president of District 1199 of the Service Employees International Union, called Carcieri a "liar and a cheat."

But for the most part, the unions told stories about the work they do.

Pat Mancini, a registered nurse at the Rhode Island Veterans Home, said: "I am proud to stand up and say I am a public employee."

"I am tired of hearing this myth about the virtue of the private sector," she added, naming a string of troubled companies. "We do the work the private sector can't do or won't do."