Hundreds gather to support public services

Montana got its version of the Wisconsin union protests Monday when teachers and other members of a pro-Democratic alliance turned out in force at the state Capitol for what they called a “Rally to Save Public Services and Education.”

The event was co-organized by the teachers union — MEA-MFT — and a new group called the Montana Organizing Project. According to event organizers more than 500 people gathered outside the state Capitol at 2 p.m. and called for the Legislature to reverse cuts to education, human services, and public safety.

MEA-MFT President Eric Feaver told the crowd that the Republican majority in the Legislature’s Appropriations subcommittees had made cumulative decisions resulting in more than $1 billion in cuts from the governor’s proposed budget.

“I don’t even have time to tell you about all the cuts,” he said. “We would be here all afternoon.”

Republican legislative leaders issued a press release that tried to draw a distinction between the protesters and “the average Montanan.”

“While most of Montana’s farmers, ranchers, and private sector employees were at work on Monday, public sector employees under the banner of the Montana Organizing Project funded by the likes of George Soros and SEIU took their paid day off to protest fiscally responsible policies at the Montana Legislature,” said the press release, which was issued by Jessica Sena, a communications aide to the Senate’s GOP Majority.

“We are taking a commonsense approach to balancing this budget and righting the ship of state,” Senate Majority Leader Jeff Essmann was quoted as saying. “It is a shame that while Montana’s private sector is just beginning to shift out of neutral, state employees are complaining about their health and retirement benefits.”

The Republican press release said that average compensation including benefits for a state employee is about $62,000, while the average Montanan only brings in about $34,000 per year with no guaranteed health or retirement benefits.

Essman focused on inequities in retirement benefits between public-sector and private-sector employees.

“The wage-earner’s Social Security retirement is based upon 30 years of work, the small business owner’s retirement is based upon how much they have managed to save over the life of their business, but the public employee’s retirement is based upon their highest consecutive three years of compensation. They are getting a golden parachute that nobody else does,” Essmann said.

The protesters, on the other hand, focused on the impact spending cuts would have on services in the state.

Billings firefighter Joe Sands said public employees have dedicated their careers to “saving lives, educating our youth and caring for our fellow citizens.”

He lamented that, “Instead of having the courage to properly fund public services and education, this bunch, the Montana legislative majority, is trying to scapegoat public employees. They’ve declared open season on our retirement, our benefits, our pay, our rights to organize and negotiate, our very jobs.”

Sands mentioned the public employees in Wisconsin, saying, “Wisconsin’s Gov. Walker made it brutally clear what he cares about. It is about crushing the one group that stands up for the middle class — the unions. Thank God we have a governor who believes in public services and public education, who stands with us!”

Following the rally, participants went into the Capitol to talk to legislators, asking them to reverse the cuts and pass the state pay plan, which gives state employees a 1 percent salary increase in 2012 and 3 percent in 2013, effective in January of each year.

“Two years ago, when the economy went south, state employees stepped up and took a voluntary pay freeze,” said Cheryl Parker. “But now the economy is improving. The revenue is available to fund the pay plan. It’s a minimal increase, but it will help.”

In a separate rally held earlier on Monday, several hundred people gathered to promote environmental protections and clean energy. The event was organized by Northern Plains Resource Council, an agriculture and conservation organization, and endorsed by 20 other conservation groups across the state.

“We oppose legislation that would weaken the Montana Environmental Policy Act, a tool that helps Montanans keep our state clean and beautiful,” said Beth Kaeding of Bozeman, a former chairwoman of Northern Plains.