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Rochester Local President Bob Flavin Remembered
More than 1,400 people crowded into Our Lady of Mercy Church in Rochester, N.Y. on Nov. 8 to bid farewell to widely respected labor leader Robert J. Flavin, president of Rochester, Local 1170. They included representatives of CWA Locals 1104, 1111, 1114 and 1123; Auto Workers, Postal Workers, Painters and Electricians; even the CEO and senior managers of the company he often found himself at odds with during his 36-year tenure as local president. Flavin died Nov. 4 of pancreatic cancer. He was 73.
"We will surely miss this true union builder," said CWA President Morton Bahr, upon learning of Flavin's passing. "He showed tremendous commitment and strength during a six-month strike in 1975 against Rochester Telephone, where there were no scabs, where the union won all its demands and where all 10 members who were discharged for alleged strike misbehavior were reinstated with full back pay."
"Bob's loyalty and commitment to his members are legend in the Rochester community," said CWA District 1 Vice President Larry Mancino.
Executive Vice President Larry Cohen, who eulogized Flavin at the service, pointed out the wonderful gift Flavin had for holding together a 1,500-member local. "For Bob, each day was special," Cohen said. "Each conversation was a connection to another human being, a relationship that he cherished. If someone needed help, he was there in a genuine way."
Jan Pierce, a former District 1 vice president, also spoke fondly of Flavin and his many accomplishments.
Linda McGrath, who assumed the local presidency with Flavin's passing, characterized Flavin as a proud Irish Catholic for whom unionism was like a religion. "Bob came across as a harsh person - and he did that to help make his points," she told Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reporter J. Leslie Sopko. "But deep down he was the softest, sweetest person you could meet."
In addition to protecting company-paid health benefits in the 1975 strike, Flavin is remembered for saving members' pensions when, in 1996 and 1997, the union again battled Rochester Tel. Shortly thereafter, top management changed. The local phone company became Frontier Telephone of Rochester and Flavin was able to build a positive relationship with new CEO Joseph Clayton, who is also vice chairman of Global Crossing, the new parent company.
Clayton ordered a corporate jet to transport Flavin and his family for Flavin's cancer treatments. He not only attended Flavin's funeral, but also granted company employees four hours' leave to do likewise. The company even took out a half-page newspaper ad remembering Flavin's legacy: "His dedication to customer service and the Rochester community was admired and respected by his friends and colleagues at Frontier. His unending loyalty to the members of Local 1170 speaks volumes about his character and commitment."
An editorial marking Flavin's passing in the Democrat and Chronicle noted that he was posthumously given the Rochester Labor Council, AFL-CIO and United Way Community Service Award in recognition of his life's work, and that the award is being renamed in his honor. "The Rochester labor movement, indeed the entire community," the editor concluded, "has lost a great champion."
"We will surely miss this true union builder," said CWA President Morton Bahr, upon learning of Flavin's passing. "He showed tremendous commitment and strength during a six-month strike in 1975 against Rochester Telephone, where there were no scabs, where the union won all its demands and where all 10 members who were discharged for alleged strike misbehavior were reinstated with full back pay."
"Bob's loyalty and commitment to his members are legend in the Rochester community," said CWA District 1 Vice President Larry Mancino.
Executive Vice President Larry Cohen, who eulogized Flavin at the service, pointed out the wonderful gift Flavin had for holding together a 1,500-member local. "For Bob, each day was special," Cohen said. "Each conversation was a connection to another human being, a relationship that he cherished. If someone needed help, he was there in a genuine way."
Jan Pierce, a former District 1 vice president, also spoke fondly of Flavin and his many accomplishments.
Linda McGrath, who assumed the local presidency with Flavin's passing, characterized Flavin as a proud Irish Catholic for whom unionism was like a religion. "Bob came across as a harsh person - and he did that to help make his points," she told Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reporter J. Leslie Sopko. "But deep down he was the softest, sweetest person you could meet."
In addition to protecting company-paid health benefits in the 1975 strike, Flavin is remembered for saving members' pensions when, in 1996 and 1997, the union again battled Rochester Tel. Shortly thereafter, top management changed. The local phone company became Frontier Telephone of Rochester and Flavin was able to build a positive relationship with new CEO Joseph Clayton, who is also vice chairman of Global Crossing, the new parent company.
Clayton ordered a corporate jet to transport Flavin and his family for Flavin's cancer treatments. He not only attended Flavin's funeral, but also granted company employees four hours' leave to do likewise. The company even took out a half-page newspaper ad remembering Flavin's legacy: "His dedication to customer service and the Rochester community was admired and respected by his friends and colleagues at Frontier. His unending loyalty to the members of Local 1170 speaks volumes about his character and commitment."
An editorial marking Flavin's passing in the Democrat and Chronicle noted that he was posthumously given the Rochester Labor Council, AFL-CIO and United Way Community Service Award in recognition of his life's work, and that the award is being renamed in his honor. "The Rochester labor movement, indeed the entire community," the editor concluded, "has lost a great champion."