If you were anywhere near Copley at lunchtime today, you might have heard the somber notes of “Taps” from a funeral service outside the John Hancock Tower. That’s because dozens of unemployed workers, faith and community leaders gathered to mark the untimely death of thousands of family-supporting jobs at the hands of Bain Capital, LLC.
The Funeral for American Jobs came as Bain’s founder and former CEO, Mitt Romney, struggles to regain front-runner status in the Republican presidential primary.
“This is a sad day – not only for the unemployed in Massachusetts, but for the entire American economy,” said Pastor William Dickerson of Dorchester, who officiated the funeral service. “It is with heavy hearts that we gather to memorialize the senseless death of so many American jobs at the hands of a cold, heartless entity.”
A short list of Bain/Romney victims:
- DDI CORPORATION: Bankrupted in 2003, laying off more than 2,100 workers. Bain Capital made $36 million in the process.
- AMERICAN PAD & PAPER: Bankrupted in 2000 after shuttering two plants. Bain pulled in $100 million in dividends.
- DADE BEHRING: Bankrupted in 2002, firing 1,900 employees. Bain still took in $421 million.
- ARMCO/GST STEEL: Bankrupted in 2001 following 1,800 layoffs. Bain earned $65 million in dividends.
Following a brief sermon, Dickerson led several dozen mourners in prayer for the jobs lost and families affected by the actions of the Romney-led private equity firm. Additional eulogies were presented by unemployed Boston-area workers – each holding the tombstone of a company bankrupted by Bain. One by one, somber mourners called out the names of the companies that have fallen at Bain’s hand, documenting the plant closures and mass layoffs that crippled communities as Romney’s firm walked away with millions.
“Mitt Romney and Bain Capital are killing jobs for profit, plain and simple,” said Olivé Hendricks, an unemployed Roslindale resident. “There’s nothing wrong with capitalism, but companies like Bain have rigged the system – they’re getting rich while the rest of us suffer because of their actions.”
Romney has used his experience as founder and CEO of Bain to claim the “job creator” mantle in his campaign for president. But media reports of his 15-year tenure paint an entirely different picture – showing a record of plant closures, bankruptcies and mass layoffs.
“Thousands of families have lost their jobs, their homes, and their life savings because of Romney and Bain’s unchecked greed,” said Paulette Robinson-Morrison, who came from Dorchester to mourn the passing of middle-class jobs. “The futures of our kids and grandkids have been destroyed because of companies like Bain, and people deserve to know the truth about Romney’s record there.”
It was sad to see some business people that abandoned the pride of making money by building a good business, creating a quality product, or life changing innovation and instead seek to make money by disassembling what others worked hard to build.
Sadder is to see those folks take pride in their destructive greed.
Thank you MassUniting for all the great work you do!