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Local 1199 Union Chief Feted on Retirement

Cathy O'Brien jokes with husband Mike O'Brien at his retirement party on Saturday.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Michael O'Brien spent 36 years as a respiratory therapist at North Adams Regional Hospital.

But that service was certainly overshadowed by his decades of union leadership and political activism, a fact that was very apparent as some 100 family and colleagues feted him Saturday night at the American Legion.

"He's retiring from the hospital but anybody that knows him, knows him as the union guy," said his daughter, Cindy Bird, who followed her parents into the health care field, and her father as a delegate with 1199SEIU.

O'Brien, of Adams, had thought he was on the way to a granddaughter's softball fundraiser and was taken by surprise by the party, since he'd retired back on Jan. 3 and been given a small sendoff by his co-workers.

He arrived at NARH in 1977 and was instrumental in organizing what was then Local 285 of the Service Employees International Union. He's outlasted "some strange administrators," led numerous negotiations and steered the local through two strike votes, the most recent in 2009, one of the more divisive chapters in SEIU history with the hospital.

He did it all, said numerous speakers, with passion, professionalism and integrity, while also providing a role model as a health-care worker and family man.

"Although he has his point of view, he always takes time in every conversation to see things from someone else's point of view," said state Sen. Benjamin B. Downing, D-Pittsfield, in presenting a proclamation from the Senate to O'Brien. "There are very few people in my line of work you can trust blindly, Mike O'Brien is one of those people."

Mayor Richard Alcombright echoed those sentiments. "I would suggest many of the things you have done are resulting in that hospital still being here today," he said.

"You made a difference in the hospital, you made a difference in this community," said Michael Fadel, former executive vice president for 1199SEIU.

Bird recalled growing up in a home full of phone calls and meetings, with her father leading one union and her mother, Catherine, a registered nurse, as part of another.

O'Brien poses after tough contract negotiations were concluded in 2009. 1199SEIU posted a reflection on his legacy in May.

"He did more than build a union, he built a culture," said Joe Twarog, who worked with O'Brien in the union early on. "It's not the contract ... it's that people believe in the union, that it's not separate from their lives."

Billie Allard, formerly a vice president and nursing director at North Adams Regional, remembered a co-worker who loved to dance and was always there to help in a crisis. Their friendship had seen some tough times when they'd later found themselves "at opposite ends of the table" but they always respected each other, she said.

"There are thousands of people in this community who had this man take care of them and they remember that," said Allard, noting his hospital work and family and friends. "When you look back on your life, you have done an amazing job."

O'Brien shared a few brief stories from over the years and said he was humbled by the outpouring of affection but insisted any accomplishments were as much his colleagues as they were his.

"It wasn't one person, I couldn't be one person, it had to be a group," he said. "I really appreciate this."

"I really am proud of my father ... I've always looked up to him," said Cindy Bird, here voice breaking. "I just always want to be a good person, like you have been."

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